Show Me How to Live
by crazykelly101
Summary: Haley James was a single mom, running a café in the small town of Tree Hill. Nathan Scott was the NBA's resident bad boy, returning to his hometown to try and repair his reputation. With the help of meddlesome family and friends, the two find themselves opening up to one another, sharing secrets from their pasts, and ultimately, finding a love they never thought they could have.
1. Chapter 1

**Thank you for reading the first chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Be sure to leave a review, favorite, and follow this story for more updates!**

 ****FYI****

 **In this story, Nathan and Lucas are COUSINS, not brothers. Karen married Keith, and they had Lucas. Dan and Deb are still Nathan's parents.**

 **Haley is a single mom to her 5-year-old son Jamie. The identity of Jamie's father will be revealed in later chapters.** **She owns and manages Karen's Café, with her partner Karen Scott. Haley and Lucas have been best friends since they were kids.**

"Reporting live from Time Warner Cable Arena, I'm Josie Kent. Breaking news from the NBA's resident bad boy, Nathan Scott of the Charlotte Bobcats. After his second drunk and disorderly arrest in the past six months following a bar fight last weekend in Miami, Scott has been suspended from summer practices and the first two preseason games.

Adam Silver, NBA commissioner released this statement, "The National Basketball Association will not tolerate players who exude violence, on the court or in the personal lives. NBA players are public figures and role models, and need to present themselves as such."

With the NBA cracking down on punishment for Scott, what does this mean for the Bobcats? Only time will tell. Back to you, Todd."

Haley James grabbed the remote control and switched the channel to a gardening show, erupting a loud groan from the customers in her café.

"Oh, don't boo who. They'll still be talking about Nathan Scott on your own TVs when you get home. We don't watch that here," she said, wiping the counters down as she smirked at the regulars.

"Come on Haley, what do you have against that guy?" Joe Turner asked, wolfing down his second burger of the afternoon, "He's a Tree Hill legend."

"Just because he uses this place as a crutch for his sob story, doesn't mean he's from here," Haley replied, "I don't like people who act like they're entitled, Joe. He's been in bar fights since college, and this is the first slap on the wrist he's gotten."

"Nathan, you've got to work with me here," Clay Evans, sports agent, pleaded, "You've driven off your publicist and your personal assistant. You're lucky they didn't file sexual harassment complaints. I'm trying to juggle all of this stuff because I'm your friend. But you have got to shape up man."

"Ah, come on Clay, I was just having fun," Nathan said, as he laid out on the chaise lounge by the pool at his home in Charlotte, "That guy had it coming; he was being a prick."

"You were making out with his fiancé!" Clay exclaimed, running his hand through his hair, "Dude, do you have a death wish? The guy was twice your size!"

"I didn't think this would happen," Nathan insisted, now sitting up from his previous relaxed position, "I've done things like this before, Clay. All I've had to do is release a public apology and pay a fine. Why are they cracking down now?"

"Because you're a public figure now Nate," Clay replied, "Kids are watching you, wanting to be like you. The NBA is trying to maintain a squeaky clean image, and you are not helping with that."

"Clay, come on, isn't there anything you can do?" Nathan questioned, "I know you can find a way to fix this."

"Lucky for you, I already have," Clay smiled mischievously.

"I don't like that look, why don't I like that look Clay?" Nathan asked.

"Tomorrow morning, you are going to issue a public apology at a press conference. And then you will be announcing what you plan to do this summer," Clay explained.

 _The Next Day…_

"I would like to thank you all for coming today," Nathan said, as cameras flashed and reporters eagerly scribbled things down in their notebooks.

"I would first like to say how incredibly sorry I am for the actions I displayed in Miami," he continued, "My temper has gotten me in trouble in the past, and for the past four months, I've been seeing a therapist, trying to better myself and get my anger under control. Miami was a relapse, and I am going to take full responsibility for what happened."

Nathan turned to look at Clay, who was standing off to the side. Clay widened his eyes slightly and nodded. Nathan sighed, turning back to the microphone.

"The NBA was right to punish me for my inexcusable behavior. I accept this punishment, but I also want to make things up to my fans. They have been there for me since I first got drafted, and I am so grateful that they have stuck by me, through all of my shortcomings," Nathan said, taking a deep breath.

"Which is why I will be spending my summer back in my hometown of Tree Hill, North Carolina. I was born there and resided there until I was nine years old. It's where I developed my love for basketball, where I discovered the true meaning of the game," he relayed, "I will be hosting a kids basketball camp in Tree Hill, as well as volunteering at the local youth center. I want to give back to the community who gave me so much as a child, who has supported me through my successes and my failures. So that is what I will be doing for the duration of my suspension. Thank you."

"Nathan, Nathan," the press called, as Clay switched Nathan spots, taking the microphone.

"Thank you all for coming, we would love to answer your questions, but Nathan has a flight to catch," Clay said, as he and the bodyguard escorted Nathan off the stage.

"Hang on Clay, before we go, there's someone I have to call," Nathan explained, pulling out his cell phone.

He dialed an all-too-familiar phone number, listening to the dial tone as it rang.

"I must be dreaming because Nathan Scott is not calling me right now, is he?" the voice on the other end of the phone answered.

"Haha very funny, Luke" Nathan smiled, "Look, I know it's been too long since I've been back to visit, but I thought I would come bug you for the summer."

"My favorite cousin, what would you want back here in Tree Hill?" Lucas Scott asked.

"You know Luke," Nathan sighed, "I guess I just want to remember why I chose the life I did. When I was in Tree Hill as a kid, everything seemed so simple. And after everything happened with my mom, and Dan and I moved away, basketball was my whole life, the only important thing. I miss having a family, I guess. The way things used to be."

"We've missed you too Nate," Lucas smiled, "Brooke will be thrilled. You'll be here when the baby is born."

Lucas' wife Brooke was pregnant with their first child, a little boy due at the end of the summer.

"Yeah, it'll be good to come back Luke," Nathan said, "My flight gets in tonight. I'm renting a house on the beach. I'll text you the address."

"Seriously, though, Nate, why are you coming back?" Lucas asked, "Does this have anything to do with you getting suspended?"

"Can't get anything past you, Scott," Nathan smiled, "Look, you've seen the news. I got into a little trouble. Again. I'm trying to fix everything. Clay came up with the idea to run a kids basketball camp in Tree Hill. Getting back to my roots, you know."

"Kids camp?" Lucas questioned, "If you need any help, Nate, I'm sure you could find a qualified, intelligent, ruggedly handsome basketball coach."

Lucas was an English teacher at Tree Hill High School and coached the varsity basketball team.

"Yeah, I already talked to Whitey," Nathan laughed, thinking about their pee-wee league basketball coach when they were kids. He'd kept in touch with Whitey Durham over the years.

"He'll be there too, but I think it'll be good to have you there Luke, if you're up for it. Keep me grounded. Keep me focused."

"You know I'd do anything for you, Nate," Lucas said, "We're family. We've got to stick together, through good times and bad."

Haley was just cleaning up the café, as the door swung open and the bell sounded.

"Sorry, we're closed," she said dully, not looking up from the tables she was wiping off.

"Wow Hales, I thought we were friends," Lucas smiled, clutching his heart.

"Haha very funny, Luke," Haley said, tossing him a rag, "If you're gonna be here, you've gotta at least pull your own weight."

Lucas began wiping down some of the tables, as he said, "So, Hales, is Jamie doing any activities or anything this summer?"

"I don't know Luke," Haley sighed, carrying a tray of dishes to the back with Lucas following her, rag now slung over his shoulder, "With your mom and Keith traveling, I'm so swamped with everything here at the café and helping Peyton at TRIC. I honestly don't know what I'm going to do with him this summer. I've never had this much on my plate before. I just…."

"Hales," Lucas cut her off, "My mom chose you to run this place because she trusts you and she knew you could do it. You've worked here since you were 15. You have raised an amazing son by yourself. If anyone can handle this, it's you."

"Thanks, Luke," Haley half smiled, now finished with the nightly clean-up, "Chef Jeff made extra chocolate chip cookies today. Payment for your slave labor?"

"You know me too well Haley James," Lucas replied, taking a cookie from the plate that Haley was holding out, "So, I was thinking, there's going to be this basketball camp at the high school for kids Jamie's age. I said I'd help out, and I know he would love it."

"Yeah I guess…" Haley began, before pausing for a moment, and then pulling the plate away from Lucas just as he was reaching for another cookie, "Lucas Eugene Scott, this doesn't have anything to do with Nathan and his suspension does it?"

"Serves me right for trying to pull one over on the valedictorian," Lucas mumbled, "Look, Hales, I know how you feel about the guy, and I know you're my best friend, but he's my cousin. And yeah, he's made mistakes, but haven't we all?"

"Lucas, I don't want my five-year-old son idolizing some lunkhead basketball man who goes around starting fights and getting wasted in his down time," Haley sighed, "You've already got him loving basketball and the Bobcats, and I think it's great that you guys have that to bond over, but I don't want Jamie around someone who's so unpredictable."

"He's been going to therapy Hales, and I'll be there the whole time," Lucas insisted, "He's been through a lot in his life that I haven't told you about. I can't turn my back on him. He's trying to change."

Haley closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, "I'll think about it."

"Alright," Lucas said, "Thanks, Hales. I'll be by to pick up Jamie in the morning. Camp starts tomorrow afternoon. Please think about it, Haley. He loves the game."

Lucas took a few more cookies, before hugging Haley and walking out the door of the café, bells jingling once again.

* * *

Haley drove home, first stopping to pick up a now sleeping Jamie from her friends Peyton and Jake's house. As she carried him into the house and laid him on his bed, she ran her hand through his sandy blonde hair. He was still wearing the oversized Nathan Scott jersey that Lucas' assistant coach Antwon "Skills" Taylor had given him a few weeks ago.

Haley sighed, leaning down and placing a kiss on Jamie's forehead, before turning to walk out.

"Good night mama," Jamie muttered sleepily, "I love you."

"I love you too Jimmy-Jam," Haley smiled, "Sweet dreams."

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **The idea came to me for this story and nagged me for weeks before I finally relented and sat down and wrote it. I haven't written any fanfiction for over a year, so I apologize for any mistakes or for this not being very good.**

 **I recently discovered One Tree Hill on Netflix from the suggestion of a friend and watched the first 8 seasons in a month and a half (I know, I'm pretty ridiculous!)**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!** **J**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for reading the second chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Just want to say a HUGE thank you to all of you who have favorited, followed, and reviewed this story! I was not expecting this much positive feedback, and I am so grateful to you guys!**

 ****FYI****

 **In this story, Nathan and Lucas are COUSINS, not brothers. Karen married Keith, and they had Lucas. Dan and Deb are still Nathan's parents.**

 **Haley is a single mom to her 5-year-old son Jamie. She owns and manages Karen's Café, with her partner Karen Scott.**

 **In this chapter, I briefly touch on who Jamie's father is. I will go into more detail in later chapters, but PLEASE DO NOT FREAK OUT! It will all make sense and will not be too OOC for Haley, I promise!**

 **-Characters might seem a little OOC, but just go with it! I know how I want this story to go, and it will all make sense in due time!**

The next morning, Friday, Lucas headed over to Haley's, hoping that she had thought about letting Jamie go the camp. The kid had a lot of talent, even for a five year old, and he loved the game.

Haley and Lucas had been best friends since she moved to Tree Hill in the fourth grade, right after Nathan had moved away. When Haley had Jamie, Lucas rightfully took his role as uncle very seriously, helping Haley whenever he could, even when he was in college. Lucas had gotten Jamie into basketball at an early age, teaching him to say "ball" (his first word) and buying him a child's size hoop for his first birthday.

* * *

"Brooke, you can't seriously be agreeing with Lucas right now," Haley exclaimed, her cell phone pressed to her ear, currently talking to her other best friend.

"Look Haley, you know I love you," Brooke began, "But I think you're being a little overprotective. Jamie loves basketball. You can't shield him from everything."

Haley, seeing the edge of Jamie's feet peeking out from under the door, now knowing he had been listening to the whole conversation, continued, "Brooke, you have to know that Nathan Scott is the biggest D-I-C-K. I've seen the interviews and the tabloids."

"But you've never met him Haley," Brooke said, "I have, and if Lucas trusts him, then so do I. I think you should let Jamie go, at least for today."

"Ugh, Brooke, why do you always have to be right," Haley relented.

* * *

Lucas knocked on the door of the small bungalow, hearing small footsteps running toward the door.

As the door opened, Jamie appeared, "Uncle Lucas!"

"J-Luke! How's my favorite man today?" Lucas asked, giving Jamie their usual high-five as he walked inside the house.

"Ready to play!" Jamie smiled, "What are we going to do today?"

"First off, where's your mom?" Lucas asked, looking around and not seeing Haley.

"She's still getting ready. She told me to answer the door when you came," Jamie said.

"Well then how would you like to go to a basketball camp today?" Lucas questioned, knowing this was dangerous territory he was treading, that Haley could come out any minute and hear him talking to Jamie about this.

"With Nathan Scott?" Jamie said, his eyes widening, "He's one of the best players in the NBA! And he's your cousin, right Uncle Lucas?"

"Yeah, he is Jamie," Lucas replied, confused about how Jamie already knew about this, "How did you know Nathan would be there?"

"I heard Mama on the phone with Aunt Brooke this morning," Jamie knowingly said, "She said that Nathan is here in Tree Hill, and then she spelled some words, so I think she knew I was listening. One of them was D-I-C.."

"Alright J-Luke," Lucas said, quieting the boy's smarts and big ears, just as Haley appeared from the hallway into the living room where the boys were.

"Ahh, my two favorite men in the same room," Haley smiled, wearing a white tank top and black mini skirt.

"Woah, Hales, you look," Lucas stammered, shocked, as she usually dressed…differently.

"Lucas Scott, just because I'm a mother doesn't mean I have to dress like a corpse all the time," Haley proceeded to explain, "You can thank your wife for my new wardrobe."

"I was wondering why she didn't come back with any milk on Saturday," Lucas smiled, "You look great Hales."

"Thanks Luke," Haley replied, grabbing her purse from the coffee table.

"Did you think any more about the camp?" he asked.

"I don't know Luke," Haley said, as she noticed Jamie's puppy dog eyes.

"Please mama," Jamie pleaded, "I'll be good, I promise. I'll do my chores without grumbling and I can help at the café too."

"That's very sweet Jamie honey, slightly illegal, but sweet," Haley laughed, looking at Lucas, "And you'll be there the whole time?"

"I won't let Jamie out of my sight," Lucas promised, "And if Nathan gets out of hand, I'll call him out on it, I swear."

"You're not supposed to swear Uncle Lucas, right Mama?" Jamie questioned.

"That's very right Jamie," Haley smiled.

"You are way too smart J-Luke," Lucas said, "And you can thank your mom for that."

"Alright, he can go," Haley relented, "But I'm picking him up. And if I don't like what I see, then no more. Deal?"

"Deal!" Jamie and Lucas said in unison, high fiving each other.

"I'll go get my jersey!" Jamie exclaimed, running to his room.

"I mean it Lucas," Haley said sternly, "Nathan Scott makes one wrong move, he'll have me to answer to."

"Duly noted Hales," Lucas said, noting how stressed out she looked and wrapping her in a hug, "Look, the camp goes from 12-3, Monday, Wednesday and Friday for a month. I'll be there and so will Whitey and Skills. Everything will be okay Hales, I promise."

"If you say so, Luke," Haley sighed, as Jamie came running back into the room, now wearing his Nathan Scott jersey.

"You have fun today Jimmy-Jam," Haley bent down, hugging her son and giving him a kiss, "Listen to your Uncle Lucas and remember, all you can do is your best, okay?"

"I love you mama," Jamie smiled, grabbing his basketball from the bin by the door.

"I love you too baby, I'll see you later!" Haley said, as Jamie and Lucas walked out the door.

* * *

It was an incredibly busy morning at the café. One of the waitresses had called in sick, leaving Haley to do the work of two people, while still performing her manager/owner responsibilities. Thankfully, all the regulars were extremely patient.

She was cursing Brooke right now for the outfit she had all but forced her at gunpoint to wear. The black mini skirt and tight white tank top were so not her, and her feet were killing her in the black strappy wedges. She had gotten several compliments on her outfits from the regulars, but most of them were elderly gentleman who she had known since she was a kid, so she laughed off their flirting.

As she picked up a large tray of orders from the kitchen to take out to the waiting tables, she heard the bells jingle and saw someone walk through the door that she definitely did not want to see. Nathan Scott.

She tried to ignore him as she walked out of the kitchen with the large tray, but as he took a seat at the counter, he noticed her, and she saw him totally jump her bones with his eyes.

After checking her out, he said rather loudly, "Excuse me, I'll have the breakfast burrito with an iced tea."

"I'm sorry, I'll be right with you," Haley said exasperated, setting the tray onto the one empty table in entire café, handing out plates to the regulars who had already been waiting almost double the time they were used to.

"You know who I am right?" Nathan questioned, as Haley returned to the counter to take Joe Turner's order. His eyes were currently wide as saucers, his mouth was open to the floor, and his hand was self-consciously holding the brim of his Charlotte Bobcats hat at the sight of Nathan Scott sitting next to him.

"I am extremely sorry to say that yes, I do," Haley replied, "But that does not mean that you're going to get any special treatment here. If you want to be treated like a celebrity, go back to Charlotte."

"Well, I don't think I appreciate your attitude, or the fact that you're enstinuating that I'm an entitled jerk."

"First of all, it's insinuating, second off, I'm not insinuating. I'm saying that you're acting like an entitled ass," Haley said, speaking her mind.

"That's it. I don't deserve to be treated like this," Nathan said angrily, "I want to speak to the manager. Tell them that their waitress is way out of line."

"You're already speaking to the manager," Haley smirked, staring Nathan dead in the eyes, "You can wait for me to take your order like everyone else, or you can leave."

"Then I want to speak to the owner," Nathan continued.

"Lucky for you, you're talking to her too," Haley replied, "Now I'm going to ask you nicely to leave. Or would you rather I call the police, and let all those photographers outside get more pictures of you in handcuffs?"

Nathan turned around to see five photographers standing outside cameras posed trying to take pictures through the long rectangular glass pane of the front door. He stood up, glaring at Haley, slamming a twenty down on the counter.

"I think I've lost my appetite," he sneered, "But I'd like to pay for this fine gentleman's meal. At least he seems to have good taste."

"Don't bother coming back," Haley said, as calmly as she could with all the anger boiling inside of her.

"Honey, not if my life depended on it," Nathan smirked, before walking out the door.

* * *

Nathan strode up to the Tree Hill High gymnasium just before 11:30, still fuming from his encounter with the insanely hot, totally bitchy café waitress/owner/manager, whoever she was.

As he walked inside, twenty small heads turned his direction, and in under ten seconds, he was being swarmed. Kids asking for pictures and autographs and asking questions.

"Woah, woah guys, let's let Nathan have a little breathing room alright?" Lucas said, breaking up the swarm.

"Thanks, Luke," Nathan sighed, feeling a lot less claustrophobic now.

"Alright, guys, go finish stretching," Lucas told the young boys, ages ranging from 5-10, "Jamie, come back for a second."

Nathan watched as the youngest and smallest boy in the group, turned around. He noticed the young boy's sandy blonde hair, large blue-green eyes, and especially, his slightly oversized Nathan Scott jersey.

"Nathan, I'd like for you to meet my partner in crime and nephew, Jamie," Lucas smiled, "Jamie, I'm sure he needs no introductions, but this is my cousin Nathan."

"Nephew?" Nathan questioned, knowing that Lucas was an only child.

"He's my best friend's son," Lucas explained, "I've been in his life since he was born, therefore making me the favorite uncle, right J-Luke?"

Jamie just smiled and stuck out his hand to Nathan, "Hi, my name is Jamie Lucas James. It's an honor to meet you Mr. Scott."

"Jamie James, huh? Interesting name," Nathan shook the young boy's hand, impressed by his politeness, "Well thank you Jamie, but you can just call me Nathan."

"I was named after my grandpa," Jamie replied matter-of-factly.

"Jamie here is one of the best players I've ever seen," Lucas admired, "He helps me coach the varsity during the school year."

"Well then Jamie, let's see what you've got," Nathan smiled, "And if you do really well, maybe I'll even sign that jersey for you at the end of the day."

Jamie's eyes got huge, as did his smile, and he quickly joined the other boys, as Nathan began to talk about what everyone was there for: basketball.

* * *

Haley had finally gotten one of the waitresses, Anna, to come in on her day off, to cover for her so she could go pick up Jamie. Thankfully, the rush had died down, the café being only half full now, but Haley was already fifteen minutes late.

She was definitely not extremely thrilled about seeing Nathan Scott again. After their encounter this morning, she did not want Jamie to keep going to the camp. She took a deep breath as she stood outside of the gymnasium at her old high school, the gym where she'd watched Lucas play many a game.

As she hurried inside, she noticed only three people left in the gym, silently cursing herself for explaining all the closing procedures to Anna three times. She had hoped she could pick up Jamie and avoid Nathan altogether. Now, it looked like them meeting once again would be inevitable.

"Thanks for signing my jersey Mr. Scott, I mean, Nathan," Jamie smiled, not even tired from all of the drills they had run that day.

"You were great today Jamie, really," Nathan assured him, "Your ball handling is really impressive for someone your age."

"Uncle Lucas has been working on that with me all year," Jamie happily exclaimed, leaving Nathan and Lucas to go shoot as he waited for his mom.

The sound of the doors to the gym opening and then closing got the attention of Lucas and Nathan, who had been talking about the Ravens upcoming roster for the season.

Nathan glanced toward the doors, only to find the rude café owner walking towards them, a scowl on her face.

"Oh great," Nathan mumbled, shifting his weight between his feet, "Here it comes."

"What are you talking about Nate?" Lucas questioned, as Jamie noticed his mother's entrance.

"Mama!" Jamie cheered, running over and jumping into her open arms. Haley's scowl quickly changed to a smile when she saw her son.

"Wait, what?" Nathan said, clearly puzzled, as Haley and Jamie walked over, hand in hand, to join the two men at half court.

"Nathan, this is my best friend Haley," Lucas began, a confused look on his face as well that matched Nathan's.

"We've met Luke," Haley replied, "At the café this morning."

"Dude, do you try the breakfast burrito like I told you?" Lucas asked, "It's like heaven in your mouth, isn't it?"

"It was really busy, so I just went back to the beach house and had some cereal," Nathan responded, looking nervously at Haley, worried she might tell Lucas what really happened.

The energy in the room had shifted, and Lucas could tell from the way Nathan and Haley were acting that something had happened between them.

"Well, thank you Luke, for taking Jamie today," Haley said, "Did you have fun?"

"Mama, can I please come back on Wednesday?" Jamie pleaded, "Nathan didn't yell at us and I did really good. Tell her Nathan!"

"This is between you and your mom Jamie," said Nathan, "But, he did do really well Haley. He's a natural."

With three pairs of pleading eyes looking her way, Haley gave in, relenting and agreeing that Jamie could keep coming to the camp, on a trial basis.

"We've got to get going Jimmy-Jam," she said, "You've got a sleepover with Andre and Chuck and you still have to do your chores like you promised."

"Haley, hang on a sec," Nathan called, causing Haley and Jamie to stop and turn around, "Can I talk to you?"

Haley looked to Lucas, who quickly jumped into action, "Hey J-Man, do you want to come help me put the balls in the locker room?"

"Can I spin around in your chair?" Jamie propositioned, as Lucas nodded, and started walking to the ball cart, Jamie following close behind.

"Not too fast kiddo," Haley laughed, watching the two walk into the locker room, before turning back, stone-faced to Nathan.

* * *

"Look, Haley, I wanted to say that I'm sorry for the way that I acted at the café this morning," Nathan said, nervously shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"Seriously, I don't care who you think you are," Haley snapped, "But you are not any more important than any other person in my café, and I won't treat you that way."

"I know, and believe me when I say that I'm being serious," Nathan insisted, "I know I acted like…"

"A pompous jackass," Haley jumped in, finishing his sentence for him.

"If I knew what the word pompous meant, I would probably agree with you," Nathan casually laughed.

Haley laughed and rolled her eyes, trying to hold back a smile.

"I've made a lot of mistakes in the past, Haley, and I don't want to be the pompous jackass anymore," Nathan assured her, "I'm really trying to change, but it's hard to change a lifetime of behavior overnight."

"Thank you, for the apology, Nathan," Haley replied.

"Does that mean I can try that breakfast burrito tomorrow morning?" Nathan asked hopefully.

"Don't flatter yourself," Haley smirked, looking Nathan straight in the eye, before taking a deep breath, "Look, I'll think about it, okay?"

* * *

The locker room door opened, and Jamie came running out straight to Haley, Lucas following behind him.

"Mama, Nathan signed my jersey," Jamie said, almost out of breath he was so excited.

"Oh he did, did he?" Haley replied, looking at the signature on Jamie's oversized Bobcats jersey, "Well, that was nice of him. Did you say thank you?"

"He did," Nathan said, "You have a very polite son."

"Well, we try," Haley smiled, taking Jamie's hand, "And now, we really do have to go."

"We still on for tomorrow night Hales?" Lucas asked, running a hand through his hair.

"Luke, you ask me this every week, and every week it's the same answer," Haley laughed, "I'll see you at TRIC at eight."

And with that, Haley and Jamie turned and began walking toward the gym doors. As they reached them, Haley hesitated, turning back around to face the two men.

"Nathan," she said, as his head shot up and his eyes met hers, "The breakfast burrito comes with fresh guacamole tomorrow."

Nathan smiled, nodding his head as he said, "Sounds delicious."

"You're on my radar Nathan Scott," Haley replied, now a more serious tone to her voice, "Watch yourself. You don't want to be on my bad side again. Ask Lucas."

The gym doors opened and then shut, leaving the two cousins alone on the court.

"Dude, she's totally right. In high school, I got a little too drunk, got a tattoo, and missed our mini-golf game on the roof of the café. She didn't talk to me for a week," Lucas explained, "What did you do to her this morning?"

"You know, typical Nathan Scott macho bravado," Nathan replied, shrugging it off, "I'm working on it, Luke, I promise."

"I know you are Nathan," Lucas nodded, "And I think that's great."

* * *

"So what's TRIC?" Nathan asked, as the two walked out to courtyard, seeing that there were a couple photographers waiting like vultures in the parking lot.

"It's a nightclub my friend Jake and his fiancé Peyton own," Lucas explained, "Saturdays are open mic nights. All of my friends and I get together and we hang out. Do you want to come?"

"I don't know Luke," Nathan sighed, crossing his arms, "Last time I was in a nightclub, I got suspended from the NBA."

"Nate, you can't shut yourself away from the world," Lucas began, "I know you, and I know that you're punishing yourself for this way more than you need want to change what the world thinks of you? Then show them."

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed the second chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **The idea came to me for this story and nagged me for weeks before I finally relented and sat down and wrote it. I haven't written any fanfiction for over a year, so I apologize for any mistakes or for this not being very good.**

 **I recently discovered One Tree Hill on Netflix from the suggestion of a friend and watched the first 8 seasons in a month and a half (I know, I'm pretty ridiculous!)**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you for reading the third chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Be sure to leave a review, favorite, and follow this story for more updates!**

 ****FYI****

 **In this story, Nathan and Lucas are COUSINS, not brothers. Karen married Keith, and they had Lucas. Dan and Deb are still Nathan's parents.**

 **Haley is a single mom to her 5-year-old son Jamie. She owns and manages Karen's Café, with her business partner Karen Scott.**

 **I want to address some issues that I have seen come up in the reviews. Yes, Jamie's father is Chris Keller. I will further explain this in later chapters.**

 **Yes, Jamie is not Nathan's son. This is an AU story (Alternate Universe!) I know that we all love the show, but I decided to take a different route with this story. I do appreciate all of the positive reviews that I have gotten!**

* * *

Saturday mornings at Karen's Café were always busy, but today was another story. After photos were posted online of Nathan's venture to the café the previous day, everyone wanted to try and catch a glimpse of him possibly returning, so it was standing room only in the small café.

To make matters worse, the waitress who had been "out sick" yesterday, had just called Haley and quit, but that wasn't even the tip of the iceberg. Haley's executive chef, Chef Jeff's wife was in the hospital, having their first baby. This left Haley, waitress Anna, and the 19 year old sous chef Adam to run the café during a busy breakfast rush.

Haley knew that it was going to be a long day, and it was only 9 am.

As she carried a large tray of plates of food to a waiting table, she heard the bells of the door ring, followed by collective gasps and whispers.

She looked up, her dark brown eyes locking with familiar icy blues.

* * *

"Woah," Nathan exclaimed as he entered the café, noticing no empty tables anywhere, no room at the counter, along with phones being pointed at him, and people staring and whispering. One person in particular, caught his gaze: Haley.

He spent fifteen minutes barricaded by the crowd by the door, taking photos and signing autographs, before finally making his way to the counter, and face to face with an exhausted-looking Haley James.

"Looks like you're a little busy here," he laughed, leaning against the small edge of the end of the counter.

"Thanks Captain Obvious," Haley replied dryly, turning to add another ticket to the already-full order wheel in the pass-thru window.

"Sorry, not funny, got it," Nathan said, hands up in surrender, "What happened?"

"One of my waitresses quit and my chef's wife is having a baby," Haley responded, before taking another table their food and returning to the counter and an awaiting Nathan.

"Could you use some help?" Nathan asked, looking around and noticing that it wasn't getting any emptier. If it was possible, it looked like there were even more people than when he had entered only a few minutes earlier.

"At this point, I could use a miracle," Haley sighed, wiping the counter and collecting some dirty dishes in a bin, "Thank god we close early on Saturdays. 2 o'clock can't come fast enough."

"I could help out if you wanted me to," Nathan offered, shrugging, "I didn't have anything else planned for today."

"I'm 99.9% sure that Nathan Scott has never waited tables in his life," Haley retorted, turning to accept someone's payment and giving them their change, thanking them for coming and telling them to return another time.

"That would be true," Nathan admitted, "But I took a few cooking classes in college. Easy A's. And I'm good with people. And if you've ever seen my games, you know I'm fast as hell."

"Look, Nathan, I appreciate the offer," Haley said, "But I really don't think that's such a good idea."

"Alright, then I'll take a breakfast burrito with extra guac and a large black coffee," Nathan smiled, glancing over to the order wheel, which was completely full, and even had a few tickets sitting on top of it. Adam, the sous chef, was running around the kitchen like a chicken with its head cut off, trying to handle everything by himself.

Haley turned, and viewed the overflowing order wheel, Adam having a freak out, and Anna bussing tables while taking orders. She turned back to Nathan, grabbed an apron from under the counter, and threw it at him.

"Wash your hands, and don't make me regret this," Haley sighed, "You can start helping Adam with the orders."

"Hey, Haley, after how I treated you yesterday, I kinda deserve this, don't you think?" Nathan questioned, tying his apron and heading back to the kitchen, a sincere look on his face.

* * *

 _4 hours later…_

As Haley turned the lock on the café doors, turned around, leaned against them, and sighed. Looking at the café, it was a mess, but not as big of a mess as it could have been, without Nathan's help.

He had worked in the kitchen for a few hours, working well with Adam and helping him to relax a bit. He had then switched to taking orders, which the customers certainly did not complain about. He had finished out the day doing dishes in the back, which is where he was now, finishing up the last of them with Adam.

Haley had sent Anna home a few minutes earlier, and made her way back to the kitchen, pausing outside the doors, only to hear Nathan and Adam discussing Adam's future in basketball.

Haley knew that Adam was putting himself through school with this job, as well as working early morning shifts at the docks on the weekdays, in addition to being on Tree Hill College's basketball team.

"Sounds like you've got it all figured out man," Nathan said.

"You really think I could do it?" Adam asked, "Make it to the NBA?"

"I think you can do whatever you put your mind to," Nathan smiled, "You've already got the working hard part down. Now, you've just got to focus, do your best, and don't take no for an answer. That's what my dad taught me. Got me to where I am today."

"Thanks Nathan," Adam replied, "For the advice, and for helping out here today. We couldn't have done it without you."

"Nah, man, I was happy to help," Nathan shrugged, "I never had to work as a kid, for anything really, except basketball. Things were handed to me, money was always there, and I always kind of thought that's one of the things that led me to be who I am. Who I used to be anyway."

"You're a good guy Nathan," Adam said sincerely.

"Thanks Adam," Nathan replied, "Hey, I'm working with some kids at a basketball camp at the high school. Maybe one of these days, if you have the time, you'd want to stop by and help out?"

"Yeah, that'd be awesome," Adam answered, looking excited.

Haley took the pause in the conversation to enter the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron.

"Thanks for staying to help clean up, Adam," Haley smiled, "You can head on home. I know you've got homework."

"Unfortunately. Bye Haley. Bye Nathan" Adam said, before heading out of the café out the back door.

* * *

"You didn't have to stay to finish the dishes," Haley began, "I could've come in early tomorrow."

"Nah, I'm sure you'd rather be getting your beauty sleep than scraping dried guac off of glass plate," Nathan laughed.

"Are you saying I need beauty sleep?" Haley retorted, eyebrows raised, not quite realizing that this could be considered flirty banter, especially by Brooke.

"Uh, no…I was just saying that…well," Nathan was totally frazzled, something that never happened to him around women.

"I'm kidding Nathan, lighten up," Haley smiled, walking over to the large double sink to help him finish the dishes.

As she walked, though, she slipped in a puddle of water that was on the floor, and right before she thought she would land on her butt in front of Nathan Scott, something, or rather, someone caught her.

"Woah there twinkle toes," Nathan smiled, "Are you okay?"

As he lifted her up, she realized how close to him she really was. His 6'2 frame towered over her own 5'3. She could feel his warm breath grazing the top of her head. She looked up at him, still in his arms. Their eyes locked, and for a split second, she felt something. Something that she couldn't quite explain. Finally realizing what exactly was happening, she quickly, wretched herself out of his grasp, nearly slipping on the puddle of water again in the process.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she stammered, clearly frazzled, "Thanks."

Haley put a towel down on the floor to soak up the water, and she and Nathan finished all the dishes in relative silence.

"So what's this I hear about an Open Mic Night at TRIC?" Nathan asked, finally breaking the silence as they walked out of the kitchen.

"My friends Jake and Peyton started it to attract more business, but now it's become a weekly thing," Haley explained, wiping off the counter one more time, "Why, is Nathan Scott a closet pop star?"

"Not even close," Nathan laughed, before the TV, which was still on, caught his attention.

"In the studio, I'm Josie Kent, keeping you up to date on all your favorite celebrity gossip. The NBA's bad boy Nathan Scott got down and dirty today, but not in the way I'm sure you're all thinking. His public image took a slight turn for the better today, as he helped out at a local café in his hometown of Tree Hill, North Carolina. Sources say that the owner of the café begged Scott for his help on a busy morning. These photos were just released by StarWatch, showing Nathan taking orders, cooking, and even bussing tables. If Nathan Scott is trying to convince the world that he's changing, it's working."

* * *

"Begged for your help?" Haley repeated, sounding disgusted, "What kind of crap are they reporting?"

"I liked the sound of it," Nathan smirked, before receiving a shove from Haley, "Ow, what was that for?"

"For being an ass," Haley replied, turning the TV off, "Damn, news sure travels fast. You were only here a few hours."

"That's how the press is," Nathan said, "But hey, at least this might get you more business."

"Great, just what I need when I'm down a waitress and a chef," Haley sighed.

"I'm sure there's gotta be waitress in this town somewhere," Nathan reassured her, "And hey, if you get stuck, you can always beg me for help again."

"Haha very funny," Haley replied, checking the time on her phone before quickly gathering her things, "I've got to go get Jamie. He has to practice the piano before Junk and Fergie come to babysit."

"Junk and Fergie?" Nathan looked puzzled at the sound of the names.

"Friends from high school who never lost their nicknames," she said, as they walked out the door.

* * *

"I'll have a beer," Nathan said to the bartender, as he sat at the bar at TRIC later that night. Lucas had invited him to come to Open Mic Night to meet some of his friends, and it wasn't like he had anything better to do.

"Brooke, are you sure this looks okay?" Haley asked, looking at her reflection in the mirror of the bathroom at TRIC, smoothing her tight black lace shirt paired with white skinny jeans and looking at the black heels adorning her feet.

"Haley, you look hot," Brooke smiled, admiring the outfit she had chosen for Haley, "You're lucky your best friend is an amazing stylist."

Nathan had now met Peyton and Jake and Millie and Marvin, who everyone called Mouth. Another friend who hadn't lost his high school nickname. They were all standing close to the stage, as a very drunk man in his forties sang, "I Believe I Can Fly."

"Where's Brooke?" Nathan asked Lucas, who was standing next to him.

"She'll be right back, had to run to the ladies room," Lucas answered, a grimace on his face, "Man, can we just put him out of his misery already?"

A few minutes later, the screeching was over, and Brooke melted into Lucas' side, her protruding stomach making itself known as well.

"Miss me?" Brooke smiled at Lucas.

"As much as ever," he replied, giving her a quick kiss.

"Wasn't Haley coming tonight?" Nathan asked, having looked around and not seen her.

"Uh, yeah," Brooke assured, "She'll be here soon I'm sure. So, Nathan, it was nice of you to help out at the café today."

Changing the subject, the gang began talking about Nathan's experience in the café, before Peyton got up on stage.

"Alright ladies and gentleman, our next performer is no stranger to any of you. She is a huge local talent that we look forward to hearing from every week. Put your hands together for Haley James!"

Nathan was surprised to see Haley walk out onto the stage and sit behind the keyboard. Taking a deep breath, she began to sing, and as she did, he couldn't believe it. She was incredible.

* * *

 _ **Let Me Fall by Bethany Joy Lenz (Inspired by Haley's first performance at TRIC)**_

* * *

The crowd erupted as Haley finished her song. She blushed, smiled, waved to the crowd, and walked off the stage, to her awaiting group of friends.

"Killed it as always Hales," Lucas said, hugging her, as the rest of her friends told her how great she did.

She didn't expect to see Nathan there, although she should have known Lucas would invite him.

"That was…you were…" Nathan stammered, reminding her of how he had acted in the café earlier that day.

"Thanks," she smiled, cutting off his awkwardness that she knew was supposed to be a compliment.

He seemed like such a different person than the confident, macho bravado guy who thrown a tantrum in the café the previous day, than the guy she'd seen in all of the tabloids and the news interviews. How could one day change a person?

Or maybe, she wondered, he really wasn't that guy at all. The guy who was a jerk, a player, a ladies man, the ultimate in spoiled celebrity. To her, this whole tough guy act seemed like a façade.

Haley inadvertently shook her head, getting these thoughts out of her mind. Why should she even be thinking about this guy? And then her mind drifted to the moment in the kitchen when she'd slipped, and he'd caught her, and their eyes had locked gazes. That split second feeling. That was not going to be easy to forget.

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed the third chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **The idea came to me for this story and nagged me for weeks before I finally relented and sat down and wrote it. I haven't written any fanfiction for over a year, so I apologize for any mistakes or for this not being very good.**

 **I recently discovered One Tree Hill on Netflix from the suggestion of a friend and watched the first 8 seasons in a month and a half (I know, I'm pretty ridiculous!)**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you for checking out the fourth chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Be sure to leave a review, favorite, and follow this story for more updates!**

* * *

 _Three weeks later…_

 **Saturday June 15** **th**

Haley could not believe it. In the past three weeks, she'd seen such a turnaround from the Nathan Scott she thought she knew. He helped her out at the café whenever he could, and the customers had begun to comment on the pair's constant bickering and slightly-flirtatious banter. He took Brooke grocery shopping while Lucas was teaching summer school. He volunteered at the youth center, playing basketball and even making macaroni art with the kids there.

Nathan was also ALL that Jamie could talk about at home. There had been no incidents at the camp, so far anyway, and Haley was starting to feel more and more comfortable around Nathan. However, there was still just something that was…off. Something that couldn't allow her to trust him 100%, and she didn't know what it was.

* * *

Haley pulled up to the river court, smiling as she got out of her car to see Nathan, Lucas, and Jamie playing basketball, old school hip hop music blasting in the background.

"Now Jamie, you can use the fade away anywhere on the court," Nathan explained, not noticing Haley's entrance, "And what you want to do with the fade away is make sure that you create separation between the offensive player and the defensive player in order to get your shot off. Watch this."

Haley watched as Nathan demonstrated the move for Jamie, with Lucas guarding him. He made it look effortless, as the ball swished through the net. Jamie's eyes were huge in admiration as he watched his favorite player in action.

"Alright, your turn Little Man," Nathan smiled, passing Jamie the ball.

"Hey, I'm not that little," Jamie declared, gripping the ball in his five year old hands, as Nathan guarded him, close to the basket.

Jamie dribbled the ball, and then jumped backwards, shooting the ball as hard as he could. Haley watched as it barely made it into the hoop.

"Yes, that is what I'm talking about!" Nathan smiled, high fiving Jamie, "That was better than some of the fade aways I've seen in the pros."

Lucas finally noticed Haley sitting on the bleachers, turning down the hip hop music.

"Looks like we have an audience," he smiled, gesturing towards her.

"Mama!" Jamie called, running and giving her a hug, "Did you see me?!"

"I sure did," Haley replied, "You were awesome!"

"Mama, when am I going to get taller?" Jamie asked, "I'm the smallest kid at basketball camp."

"You can thank your short pants mom for that," Nathan replied, smiling while he and Lucas were walking up to join them.

"Hey, he got some good things from me," Haley retorted, "Like the piano. We've been practicing and you're getting pretty good at that, aren't you Jamie?"

"Yeah, I guess," Jamie sighed, quickly changing the subject, "Can we go get some ice cream now, since I did so good?"

"Hmmm…I don't know," Haley pondered, turning to Lucas and Nathan, "Did you clean your room this morning like I asked you to before I went to work?"

"Mostly…" Jamie mumbled, meeting Haley's raised-eyebrow Mom look, "Kinda. But I'll finish as soon as we get home, I promise."

"I'm holding you to that, Jimmy Jam. Go grab your ball kiddo, and we'll get out of here," Haley smiled, as Jamie ran across the court.

"But alas, I must bid you all a fond farewell," Lucas finally spoke up, "Brooke has a doctor's appointment, and if I miss another one, you might find me at the bottom of the river."

"Now that I can believe," Nathan laughed, "I'll see you later man."

Haley said goodbye to Lucas as well, before Jamie came running back to where Nathan and Haley were.

"Mama, can Nathan come get ice cream with us?" Jamie asked, puppy dog eyes in full force.

"Sweetie, I'm sure Nathan's really busy today," Haley hopefully made an excuse.

"Actually, I have a few hours to kill before I have to be at the youth center," Nathan replied, "I'd love to join you, if you'd have me."

"Please mom?!" Jamie begged.

"Yeah, please?" Nathan smirked.

"Alright," Haley sighed, "Let's go!"

* * *

Nathan and Haley sat on a bench by the river, as Jamie chased the birds by the fountain, his chocolate ice cream cone in his hand, and chocolate covering his face.

"He's a great kid," Nathan began, "Honestly, I'm kind of jealous of him."

"NBA superstar Nathan Scott is jealous of a five year old?" Haley retorted, raising her eyebrows in question.

"He hasn't got a care in the world," Nathan continued, "When you're a kid, everything seems so simple and you enjoy the smallest things, like chasing the birds. Then, one day, you grow up and everything changes, your priorities shift, and you forget what really matters."

"Well Mr. Hot Shot, that actually sounded smart," Haley smiled, bumping her shoulder into his, laughing.

"It happens on occasion," Nathan said, returning the smile, "Plus, how could you not be jealous of a kid who's got as great of a mom as you?"

Haley blushed, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear, her body language turning tense, as she shifted away from Nathan on the bench.

A few moments of silence passed, as Nathan watched Haley, who was watching Jamie. He noticed her smile as she observed the chocolate smeared all over his face.

There was something different about her, that he had become more and more aware of over the past few weeks of spending time with her. She was nothing at all like any woman he had ever met. She didn't put up with his bullshit. She put him in his place time and time again, not afraid to berate him in public, and that was something that he needed, if he truly wanted to change.

* * *

"So did Millie tell you about the benefit gala I want to put on for the youth center?" Nathan asked, finally breaking the silence.

Millicent Huxtable was the program coordinator at the youth center. She, too, had been as apprehensive as Haley when she'd heard Nathan would be volunteering. However, he'd been a model volunteer, and had even offered to invite some of his friends and some of the big wigs he knew to come to a fundraiser to raise money for the center, which ran entirely on donations. Millie couldn't say no to that, not when it would benefit the kids.

"Yeah, she mentioned it," Haley replied, "You know, you're already doing so much for them. Did you really think you could get away with the 'anonymous' donation of all that brand new sports equipment?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Nathan said, trying to keep a straight face, but with Haley looking at him the way she was, he cracked a small smile, before returning to his ste one face.

"I hope you're not a gambler Nathan Scott, because you have a terrible poker face," Haley smiled, "So when is this gala anyway?"

"I want everything to be perfect," Nathan answered, "So I'm shooting for August. Should give me enough time to get the catering and the performers and everything sorted out."

"Well, I guess I do owe you for helping out at the café," Haley reasoned, "So if you need any help, just let me know."

"I'll be sure to take you up on that offer," he said, just as Jamie came running up to them.

* * *

"Just in time, Jimmy Jam," Haley laughed, wiping off the small boy's chocolate-covered face, "Chester just called, and said something about you forgetting to feed him this morning? Ring a bell?"

Jamie's eyes widened, "We'd better get home Mama!"

"I think you're right, but first, thank Nathan for the ice cream," said Haley, as she stood up from the bench and grabbed Jamie's hand.

Despite her reassuring that she could buy her and Jamie's ice creams, Nathan had paid for it without hesitation, saying it was the least he could do.

"Thanks for the ice cream Nathan," Jamie smiled, giving him a high five, "And for teaching me the fade away."

"Anytime Jamie," he said, as he watched the two of them walk away.

* * *

Haley was sitting on the couch later that night after putting Jamie to bed, relishing in her small amount of alone time, which was rare nowadays, when her phone started to ring. She didn't even look to see who it was before answering.

"Hey Haley, it's Nathan," the person on the other end greeted.

"Nathan?" Haley questioned, the surprise in her voice very apparent.

She had given Nathan her phone number a few weeks ago, right after he'd started helping out at the café, in case there were any problems when he was there and she wasn't. He had called a few times since then, but a call this late had never happened before.

"I hope it's okay that I called," he continued.

"Yeah, sorry, I just wasn't expecting it," her palms began to sweat a bit, and she tried to calm herself down. It was just Nathan, she had to remind herself.

"So I heard Chef Jeff is back, so my impeccable service is no longer needed," Nathan tried to sound confident, but Haley could hear his voice wavering a bit, "So I'm going to need a new excuse to spend time with you."

This caught Haley completely off guard. She had found herself returning his flirtatious comments occasionally at work, but she assured herself that it was just a reflex. She still didn't fully trust him. In the back of her mind, she could still see the news footage of the bar fight and all the tabloid covers with him and half naked girls. It was hard for her to believe that he was truly changing, even though she was seeing it and experiencing it first-hand.

* * *

After what seemed like forever to Nathan, he heard Haley begin to speak.

"Nathan, I really appreciate all that you've done to help with the café and with Jamie," she lingered.

"But," Nathan sighed, falling onto the couch in a huff.

"But I don't think that us spending time together, you and me, is such a good idea," she forced herself to say.

A part of her wanted to spend more time with him, one on one, to find out more about him, who he really was and who he wanted to be. To see past his macho bravado exterior, the super confident person that he played. She knew that it was a façade, but she didn't know why. Why he really came back, or why he had left Tree Hill so long ago in the first place.

But another part of her wanted to keep her walls up, to keep herself safe. She had been hurt before, experienced true heartbreak, and didn't want to put herself through that again. She had spent the past five years building up these walls to guard her heart, and in three weeks, Nathan had begun to make a crack, to chip away, to make her forget how she had been treated by a man before. Plus, and most importantly, she had Jamie to think about. She didn't want him (or herself) getting attached to Nathan when she knew he would be leaving as soon as the summer was over, to return to his glamourous celebrity lifestyle.

"Well I hope you'll reconsider, Haley, because I really do like spending time with you and with Jamie," Nathan assured her, "My offer stands."

"I should go, it's getting late," Haley stammered, before hanging up the phone.

* * *

"WHAT?" Brooke exclaimed loudly the next morning, as she sat at the counter at the café, after Haley had told her that Nathan had basically asked her on a date, and that she'd declined.

"Brooke, it's not a big deal," Haley tried to reason, as she looked around, noticing people's heads turn their way, "And could you keep your voice down please? The gossip train travels fast in this town, especially when it has to do with him."

"Haley, you haven't been on a single date in five years," Brooke pointed out, "And I've seen you and Nathan together. Something is there, I just know it."

"I've known the guy for three weeks Brooke," Haley whispered, "And you know that I don't believe in fate like you and Lucas do."

"Look Hales," Brooke sympathized, "I know that it's hard for you to open your heart after what happened. But Nathan isn't Chris, no matter how hard you compare the two."

"Don't say his name Brooke," Haley replied coldly, "We don't talk about him."

"Haley, you can't close yourself off from the world because one guy hurt you five years ago," said Brooke sternly, as she got up, grabbed Haley's arm, and led her back to the stockroom in the kitchen, where they could be alone, "Promise me you'll think about it, okay? I can really see a difference in Nate. He's trying, Haley, something that Chris never did and has never done. Give him a chance."

Haley looked into Brooke's eyes, sighing as she knew that she was right, but accepting the fact that she had to let go a little in order to move on with her life, that was hard.

* * *

Nathan sat on the deserted beach behind his beach house, staring out at the water, drinking a beer on Sunday afternoon, nursing his pride after Haley had rejected his advances.

He didn't want to give up on her. There was just something about her and he couldn't put his finger on it. But, he didn't want to pressure her or scare her off. So he was sitting back, and if all they were going to be was friends, he would accept that.

* * *

 **Monday night**

Haley was driving to Brooke and Lucas' house, checking on Jamie in the rear view mirror as she drove. Brooke had texted her earlier that day, declaring tonight a "girls night, and telling her to get dressed up. Haley found this strange, because they usually had girls' nights on Fridays, but Brooke told her that Millie was so busy helping plan the benefit gala, that tonight was her only free night for a while.

So there Haley was, walking Jamie up the driveway to Lucas and Brooke's house, pulling at the end of her new black lace dress. Brooke had insisted that she and Haley and Peyton go shopping the previous day, complaining that because of the pregnancy, none of her clothes fit. On the shopping trip, Peyton had found a black dress with one lace sleeve, and insisted that Haley try it on. Although it was not something that she would usually wear, Haley decided to welcome a small bit of change. Anything to keep her mind off of Nathan.

* * *

She knocked on the door, and a few moments later, Lucas opened the door.

"Uncle Lucas!" Jamie cheered, giving him a high five before running into the house.

"Try to get him to bed before 10 please Luke," Haley sighed, knowing that the last girls night, she had come back at one am to find Jamie still awake, hyped up on sugar from the ice cream Lucas had let him have.

"I'll do my best Hales," Lucas smiled.

"Where's Brooke?" Haley questioned, looking around into the house, "I thought I was supposed to pick her up?"

"Peyton's car went bust again," Lucas explained, "Brooke went to pick her up, and said to tell you that they'll meet you at The Docks at 9."

Haley believed this. She knew that Peyton had had her Comet since high school, and although it kept breaking down, she refused to get a new car.

The Docks was a popular restaurant in Tree Hill, one of the only "fancy" restaurants in town. Brooke had worked there for a few summers in high school.

* * *

"I'm here for a reservation under Scott," Haley told the hostess, giving her Brooke's married last name.

"Ah, right this way, you have a table on the patio," the hostess smiled, as Haley followed her outside, trying not to kill herself in the red stilettos Brooke had contributed to her outfit tonight.

The hostess finally stopped at a secluded table for two, with an impeccable view of the river, the starry night sky framing the whole scene.

"Um, I think there's been a mistake," Haley stammered, "I'm supposed to be meeting a group of friends."

"Mrs. Scott specifically reserved a table for two," the hostess replied, before walking away.

A confused Haley shook her head, sitting down at the table, trying to figure out what Brooke was up to.

She found out all too soon, though, when a pair of familiar icy blue eyes met hers as he walked up.

"Nathan?' Haley questioned, wanting to strangle Brooke right about now, "What are you doing here?"

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed the fourth chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Next chapter will feature Nathan and Haley's date! Any suggestions on what you'd like to see happen?**

* * *

 **Please leave any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	5. Chapter 5

**In this chapter, you will find out a bit about what happened with Chris and Haley. I will go into more detail in later chapters. Enjoy!**

 ****Credits to the writers of Season 1, Episode 8 for some of the dialogue/storylines featured in this chapter!****

* * *

 _ **Previously in Show Me How To Live…**_

 _ **Nathan wanted to spend more time with Haley, just the two of them, but Haley wasn't so sure about the idea, panicking at the thought of getting close to another man after events from past.**_

 _ **Haley told Brooke about the whole "Nathan" situation, and Brooke tried to convince Haley that Nathan is changing, and that she can't lock her heart away forever. Sometimes, you have to take a chance.**_

 _ **Haley went to The Docks, a fancy restaurant thinking she was meeting Brooke and Peyton for a girls' night. She was shocked to see Nathan show up as she was seated at a table for two.**_

* * *

A confused Haley shook her head, sitting down at the table, trying to figure out what Brooke was up to.

She found out all too soon, though, when a pair of familiar icy blue eyes met hers as he walked up.

"Nathan?' Haley questioned, wanting to strangle Brooke right about now, "What are you doing here?"

"Lucas set up an interview for me with Mouth, I mean, Marvin McFadden. Apparently he works at the news station?" Nathan replied, acting confused himself, "I was supposed to meet him here. I swear Haley, I knew nothing about whatever this is."

"Lucky for you, I unfortunately know exactly who is behind all of this," Haley sighed, looking at Nathan.

"Brooke," they answered in unison, lightly laughing.

Haley said, "I should have known. She's been acting weird the past few days."

"Lucas too," Nathan said, still hovering awkwardly over the table, hands in his pockets, "I'm sorry, I really didn't know she was going to do this."

Just as Nathan said that, the hostess returned, an envelope in her hand.

"Mrs. Scott requested that I leave this with you," she politely said, before handing the envelope to Nathan and walking away.

* * *

"Well, I guess we should open it," Nathan finally sighed, taking the seat across the table from Haley, and opening the envelope.

"I know you both probably hate me a little right now, but believe me, you'll definitely thank me for this. Order your favorite dish for the other person. While you wait for the food to arrive, tell three things that you like about each other," Nathan read.

"I don't know about this," Haley stammered, beginning to stand up from the table.

"Look, I'll go first," he rushed, trying to get her to stay, "You are the most patient person I know. You had to be to put up with me every day at the café. And I like that you don't treat me like I'm somebody special. I've been treated that way for so long, I forgot what it was like to just be….me. Look, I know I have no right to ask, but will you stay? Plus, this is Brooke. I mean, you can bet it's not going to be boring."

As Nathan spoke, Haley remained standing next to the table, their eyes locked together, a small smile appearing on her face.

"And I'm free to bail whenever?" Haley prompted, still looking unsure.

"Absolutely," Nathan replied, "Trust me."

"Uh huh," Haley looked around, sighing, before sitting back down, "Okay. What the hell!"

* * *

Their waitress came, handing them menus, before leaving to give them a few minutes to think about what they wanted.

"So we're ordering our favorite dish for the other person," Haley smiled.

"Any chance your favorite dish is prime rib?" Nathan asked, matching her smile.

"Oh yeah, because we have a lot of that at my house," Haley replied sarcastically.

"I'm not very experienced with this so…uh…" Nathan began to say nervously.

"Ordering food?" Haley questioned.

"No, I mean, my life has all just been parties and games and drama. I never really did anything like this. This is different," Nathan sincerely answered.

Haley nodded, "Different good? Different weird?"

"No, good," Nathan assured her.

"Okay," Haley shyly smiled, before looking back down at the menu.

Nathan couldn't help but look at her, this beautiful woman who was unlike any other he'd met before, "I'm really glad you decided to stay."

* * *

"You know, you never did say the third thing you like about me," Haley pointed out, as they waited for their food.

"You're one of the best moms I've ever met," Nathan said, "Jamie adores you. At camp, you were all he could talk about."

"Oh please," Haley laughed, "At home, you're all he talks about. But thanks. It's been hard, no doubt, but I couldn't imagine my life without him."

Nathan smiled before saying, "Alright, your turn."

"Okay, uh, three things I like about you," Haley began.

"My good looks, of course," Nathan cut in, smirking.

Haley laughed, "I like how great you are with Jamie. You really have become one of his favorite people in such a short amount of time. And I like how I can see that you're changing, and that you're committed to being better. And I guess you're not horrible to look at."

* * *

"I thought you'd be into lobster," Nathan stated, as a bowl of macaroni and cheese was placed in front of him.

"Dude, macaroni and cheese is food of the gods," Haley smiled.

Nathan laughed, "Yeah, if the gods are five year olds."

"Well, I do live with one," Haley replied, taking a bite of her prime rib, "Ugh, so good!"

"Haha don't rub it in," Nathan teased, as the waitress came back, handing him another envelope.

"Now that you've warmed up to the idea of this date, it's time to get a bit serious. Reveal a secret that nobody else knows about you," Nathan read.

"Okay," Haley started, "When I was in the second grade, I stole some candy."

"Come on," Nathan laughed, "that's not a secret! Tell me something, for real."

"Alright," she nodded, "When I was 17, I got offered a record deal and a tour with a music label."

"Woah, Haley, that's a big deal," Nathan began, before he did the math in his head and realized, "But you didn't take it, because of Jamie?"

"Touring and raising a baby? I knew that I couldn't do both things halfway, so I had to grow up and make a choice. I put my dreams on hold, so I could raise my son," Haley explained.

"And Jamie's dad?" Nathan asked, before realizing what he'd just asked, "Sorry, that's none of my business."

"No, it's ok," Haley replied, suddenly stammering and feeling slightly nervous. She hadn't spoken to anyone about Chris, and what really happened with him, in five years, "He and I performed together, at Karen's and other venues in nearby towns. They offered the tour to both of us, together. I said no, and he said yes."

"Woah," Nathan blurted, "Haley, I'm sorry that you had to go through that."

"Don't be," Haley nervously chuckled, "We're so much better off without him."

* * *

A few moments of silence passed before Haley said, "So, what about you? What's your secret?"

Just as she asked that, a familiar face passed the table, before stopping and walking back over.

"Nate, what are you doing here?" Clay, Nathan's agent asked.

"Well, um," Nathan suddenly got nervous and stammered, "You know that Haley owns the café I've been helping out at, right?"

"Looks more like a date to me," Clay replied, looking concerned. He was not only Nathan's agent, but one of his best friends, and he didn't want anything ending up in the press that could ruin the reputation that he was rebuilding.

"No, Clay, it's definitely not a date," Nathan quickly replied, "Nothing to worry about, I promise."

"There better not be," Clay sternly said, before walking away.

* * *

"Hey, sorry about that," Nathan said to Haley, who looked visibly hurt by what she'd just heard.

"Are you really that embarrassed to be seen with me?" Haley asked.

"No, Haley, of course not," Nathan tried to explain, "Clay's my agent. He's just worried about my reputation and the press…"

"Your reputation?" Haley gawked, "Oh, I get it. Being seen with a diner girl isn't as good as being seen with a supermodel. Is that it?"

"No," Nathan pleaded, "Haley please just listen to me."

"You know, for a few hours there I was actually starting to think that you weren't a son of a bitch and you just, God, fooled me again," Haley sighed, standing up, throwing her napkin on the table, before walking out.

"Haley wait!" Nathan called, too late though.

* * *

"HE DID WHAT?" Brooke shouted, déjà vu for Haley from her previous conversation with Brooke about Nathan.

Haley had left The Docks and driven straight to Brooke and Lucas'. Jamie and Lucas were both asleep, but Brooke had decided to stay up to see how her handiwork had played out. Haley had told her everything.

"Brooke, I really thought he was different," Haley sighed, a tear running down her cheek, "God, I don't even know why I'm crying. The whole thing is just a stupid mess."

"I'll kill him Haley, I really will," Brooke insisted, "No one will suspect that a pregnant woman did it."

"Thanks Brooke, but I should have seen this coming," Haley replied, "He dates supermodels and actresses. Why would I think he'd really be interested in a single mom who owns a café and has a ton of baggage?"

"Haley, you listen to me," Brooke sat down, taking one of Haley's hands in her own, "Any guy would be lucky to have you and Jamie in their lives. You deserve the best, and you need to follow your heart. From what you said, it sounded like up until he saw his agent, he was being real with you."

"What do you know about that guy, Clay, anyway?" Haley asked, knowing Brooke knew something.

"He and Nate were friends in high school, in Charlotte," Brooke began, "They're really close, but Nathan's made their friendship hard by screwing up so much. Clay is left behind to clean up his messes. I'm sure that that is why Nathan acted the way he did, Hales. He doesn't want Clay to worry."

"I know he's your family Brooke, but you can't keep defending him," Haley sighed, standing up, "That's what everyone's been doing for him his whole life. One day, Nathan Scott is going to have to grow up and realize that he has to fight his own battles. He has to fight for what he wants."

* * *

The next morning, Haley was at the café, working. It was good to have Chef Jeff back to work in the kitchen, as well. She'd loved looking at the photos he'd brought of his newborn daughter Clara, oohing and ahhing at the adorable little girl.

But, today, she couldn't ignore the nagging in her head. She'd gotten so used to working with Nathan, that not having him here was strange. The regulars had asked about him, but she'd avoided the questions entirely.

Last night was still a vivid memory in her brain, although she wished she could forget it. She had let her guard down and shared a genuine secret with him, thinking that she could trust him. She still remembered that feeling that she'd had when he'd caught her in the kitchen only weeks ago. That spark, that electricity that she felt whenever he was in close proximity.

She shook her head, returning to work, taking orders and accepting payments.

Things began to slow down, and the café was almost empty, when the familiar door bells chimed as someone walked in. Icy blue eyes met cold brown ones as Nathan nervously entered the café.

Haley stood behind the counter, pretending to be busy doing anything at all, when he approached the counter.

"Haley, can we talk for a minute?" he asked, trying to be quiet.

"Sorry, I'm busy," she quickly replied, not making eye contact with him.

"Like hell you are," Joe Turner, one of the regulars, cut in from his seat at the counter.

"Joe," Haley snapped, looking at him wondering what he was thinking.

"Haley, you've been moping around here all morning and we all know it has something to do with Nathan," Joe said, "So let him say what he has to say. And if you want some privacy, I'm sure Chef Jeff and Adam would love a break. Send 'em out here and we'll all keep them company while you two talk and sort things out."

Feeling the eyes of the remaining customers, all regulars, on her at that moment, she knew it was of no use to fight against them. She sighed, finally making quick eye contact with Nathan before gesturing towards the kitchen doors. Chef Jeff and Adam had heard Joe's comment, and as soon as Haley and Nathan walked in, they walked out.

* * *

Haley led Nathan to the stockroom, so they could have a sliver of privacy.

She finally turned to face him as he said, "Look, Haley, I need to apologize."

"You should write your apologies in bulk if you're going to hand them out that often," Haley huffed, her arms crossed in front of her.

Nathan looked upset, saying, "Can we just…I don't know how to do this alright? I'm not like you."

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Haley asked defensively.

"I screw up a lot, alright? And being around you has just further proven to me that I don't want to be that guy anymore."

Haley sighed, "Well, who do you want to be, Nathan? Hmmm?"

"I want to be someone who's good enough to be seen with you," he replied quietly, looking down at his feet, showing for a moment, that his macho bravado he usually carried around was an act.

Haley paused for a moment, before speaking, in a louder, more frustrated voice this time, "Well you should've thought of that last night. You know, I keep, I keep putting myself out there, and you keep blowing it, it's probably a good thing because at this point there's nothing you could say or do that's gonna surprise me."

* * *

As she had just gotten her last word out, and before she even fully realized what was happening, Nathan leaned in and kissed her quickly.

The responsible voice in Haley's head demanded that she push him away and establish boundaries. But, she thought, how much harm can one kiss do, really? Besides, he was a really good kisser.

Haley spoke up, quietly, after the kiss had been broken, "Except that. You really shouldn't have done that, Nathan."

"I wanted to," Nathan replied glumly, looking down at the floor again, before meeting her gaze once more.

"Yeah," Haley paused, looking at him.

Then, suddenly, without any warning, Haley launched herself at Nathan, their noses bumping before their lips touched. But when the kiss started, it was like dynamite exploding, much more passionate than the first kiss. Nathan pulled her close to him, holding her around her waist.

When they finally broke apart and came up for air, they stayed in their current position, Haley's arms around Nathan's neck, and his hands around her waist, looking into each other's eyes.

* * *

Haley was breathing slightly heavily, as she looked at him, "I should, um…get back to work."

"Yeah, you should," Nathan replied, but neither of them moved.

Nathan leaned forward, stealing one more kiss, before Haley laughed, pulling away.

She straightened her shirt and fixed her hair, which had gotten rather tousled in their heated make-out session.

"What time do you get off?" he asked, as they walked towards the kitchen doors.

"We close at 9. You could come help me clean up, if you wanted. For old time's sake?" Haley offered, smiling shyly at him before walking back out into the café.

* * *

After Haley had said goodbye to Chef Jeff and Adam, she self-consciously brought her hand to her lips, touching them and remembering her encounter with Nathan earlier that day. She was brought out of her memory by a knock at the door.

She looked up, seeing Nathan standing outside. She hurried over, unlocking the door and letting him in, before locking it again.

"So, it was a slow night, and I already got everything cleaned up, but I thought maybe we could talk," Haley sighed, taking a seat at one of the tables, Nathan sitting down next to her.

"I'm guessing you want to talk about what happened this morning then," Nathan began, looking at her for confirmation. Her being so flustered and her face turning a slight shade of pink gave him his answer.

"Haley, I meant what I said this morning. I like you, and I'd love to get the chance to know you better, and spend more time with you, you and Jamie, if you're okay with that?" Nathan asked, his hand resting on Haley's knee.

Haley moved her hand to rest on top of Nathan's, caressing his hand with her thumb, "Nathan, I like you too. But I have to be careful about all of this. No matter what I feel, I have to think about Jamie first."

"I wouldn't want you to do it any other way," Nathan smiled, "This is the last week of the camp, but if it's okay with you, I'd like to keep working with Jamie a few times a week. He has a real talent and he loves the game. Reminds me of me when I was a kid."

Haley couldn't believe that this was actually happening, "I think that he'd like that."

"I have to warn you, Haley," Nathan said, sounding more serious, moving his hand to intertwine their fingers together, "You know that the press has been all over town since I've gotten here. They're vultures. I think we should be careful and keep things low profile for now. I don't want you and Jamie getting followed and harassed. Once they have you in their sights, they won't stop until they get what they want."

"I understand," Haley replied, "Since we don't even know what this is yet, I just think we should take things slow."

"We can take things as slow as you want to," Nathan assured her.

* * *

As Haley returned home that night, she paused in Jamie's doorway, looking in on his sleeping form, wearing his autographed Nathan Scott jersey. She smiled, knowing that he wore the thing every day. She could hardly get it off him to wash it once or twice a week.

Nathan had walked her home, a true gentleman, and even kissed her goodnight at the doorstep. She had no idea what she was getting herself into, but she was interested to see where things could go.

Before she went to bed, she sent a quick text, before turning out her light and going to sleep.

Nathan's phone buzzed as he got out of the shower, a towel wrapped around his waist. He clicked on the message and read:

 _ **You still owe me a secret ;) –Haley**_

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed the fifth chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	6. Chapter 6

****Someone asked in their review how far along Brooke was in her pregnancy. She is roughly 7 months pregnant, due in August. Right now in the story, we're middle/late June.****

* * *

 **Friday June 21** **st** **…Last day of the basketball camp**

Haley was seated in the bleachers in the high school gym that Friday. It was the last day of the basketball camp, and the kids had been divided into two teams, to play an actual game. Jamie was ecstatic. He'd woken up at 5 am that morning, wanting to leave right then.

Seated around Haley were Brooke, Jake and Peyton, Mouth and Millie, and Junk, Fergie, and Skills. They had all come out to watch Jamie play. Seeing them all there made Haley so grateful to have such a great support system around her. They'd all been friends since high school, and they'd all stepped up to help her with Jamie over the past five years.

The only people who knew about her and Nathan were Brooke and Lucas, for now. They couldn't avoid telling two of the most important people in their lives. They both agreed that Jamie shouldn't know anything just yet either.

* * *

As she spoke with Brooke about baby names (Brooke liked Mason, Lucas liked William), a voice shouting her name caught her attention. It was Lucas, standing down by the team, waving her over. Worried that something might be wrong with Jamie, she hurried across the court.

"Luke, what's going on?" she asked, noticing that Jamie was standing over with Nathan, who was coaching his team. He looked fine.

Lucas cleared his throat, "We have a slight problem. The girl who was supposed to sing the national anthem is sick. It's tradition at the games, and we can't really go without it. Nate and I thought that maybe you could…?"

Haley sighed, looking into Lucas' pleading eyes, "You owe me big time."

"You're the best Hales," he smiled, "I'll get everything started."

* * *

"How's everyone doing?" Lucas said into the microphone, as the large crowd that had gathered cheered, "Awesome. Well, I know the kids are really excited to play, so I don't want to make this too long. So, without further ado, I'll pass the mic to the person who made this all possible. Ladies and gentleman, Mr. Nathan Scott!"

The crowd roared, and cameras flashed. The press was covering the event, reporters and photographers were everywhere.

"Thanks everyone for coming out today," Nathan smiled, "But I can't take the spotlight on this one. These kids have worked hard all month, building their skills and having fun. I see some great future talent here for the sport of basketball."

Nathan looked over and saw Haley standing by Lucas, before continuing, "And now, let's get this started with the National Anthem being performed by the lovely and talented, Miss Haley James."

Haley laughed and rolled her eyes, before walking over to take the mic from Nathan, his fingers brushing her hand for just a split second, but enough to cause shivers to run down her spine.

* * *

As Haley sang the last note of the song, the applause began, and she still couldn't believe how much she loved it: performing in front of people. She smiled, making eye contact with Nathan, who was clapping vigorously, before handing the mic to Mouth, who was the announcer for the game.

The game went by quickly, Haley amazed at how good Jamie had gotten over the past month. Lucas had introduced him to basketball practically the day he was born, but Nathan had really taken the time with him this past month, taken him under his wing.

The game ended with Jamie's team winning by two points. Jamie had scored ten points himself, using the fadeaway that Nathan had taught him a few times during the game.

The gang got up from the bleachers, as all the parents were finding their children and congratulating them. Haley looked for Jamie in the crowd, finding him standing next to Nathan, who had given him a high five and was talking to him. She made eye contact with Nathan, who pointed her out to Jamie.

"Mama!" he exclaimed, running over to her.

She bent down, catching Jamie in a hug, "You were so good baby! I am so proud of you!"

Nathan walked over then, joined by Lucas and Brooke.

"The coaches weren't too bad either," Haley smirked, catching Brooke's knowing glance between her and Nathan.

* * *

"Mama, can we go get ice cream now?" Jamie asked, tugging on Haley's arm, "You promised."

"Well, I guess I did," Haley smiled, being brought back to reality, "Would you guys care to join us?"

By now, the whole gang had gathered at center court, but one by one, they uttered excuses why they couldn't go, congratulating Jamie before leaving, until it was just Nathan, Brooke, and Lucas left.

"You know, Hales, my back's really hurting from sitting on those bleachers for so long," Brooke feigned, placing a hand on the small of her back, "I really should just get home and lie down."

Haley suddenly realized what was going on, sighing and rolling her eyes.

"Fine, leave, miss all the fun!" Haley cheered, before grabbing Jamie's hand and beginning to walk away. Turning back to Nathan, who had remained where he was standing she said, "Umm, I'll text you alright?"

Knowing that the press was still there, wanting to talk to Nathan, she knew that he could be followed, and didn't want any pictures of her and Jamie getting out, or rumors to start spreading about her and Nathan. Knowing that, although it sucked, they'd have to sneak around to see each other.

* * *

After he'd done his interview with the press, and taken some photos with fans, the gym had cleared out. Then, Nathan felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

 _ **There's an ice cream shop in Winnabow, about 15 minutes west of Tree Hill. Meet us there at 4. Should be far enough to keep the vultures at bay**_ _ **-Haley**_

Reading Haley's comment about the vultures made Nathan chuckle, as he sent a quick reply saying he'd see them soon. He turned towards the doors, running into Clay in the process.

"Alright, great job," he smiled, placing a hand on Nathan's shoulder, "The press ate it all up. Now, you've got a phone interview with SportsCenter in 20 minutes. I figured we'd take the call at the beach house, throw back a few beers, and relax."

"I've actually got plans, Clay," Nathan replied, "Can we postpone the interview till tomorrow or something?"

"What, something with your family?" Clay questioned, "Nathan, I'm sure they'll understand. This is SportsCenter. The guys who can make or break you in the sports world. Don't you know that?"

Nathan sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets, "Clay, of course I know that, but for once, can't I make the decision? I appreciate all that you've done for me man, but I need a break from the press and the interviews. I thought that's what coming back to Tree Hill was for."

Clay studied Nathan's face for a few minutes, before his eyes squinted and his head tilted to the side a bit, "This is about that girl from the restaurant isn't it? Are you seeing her or something?"

"If I am or if I'm not, either way, it's not really any of your business, Clay," Nathan huffed, beginning to walk away, before Clay stepped into his path.

"Nate, hang on a sec, I'm your agent," Clay angrily said, "I'm the one who's going to have to clean up the mess when this doesn't work out, just like all the times before."

Clay paused, taking a deep breath before the tone of his voice changed, becoming kinder, "But more importantly, I'm your friend. You can tell me anything, dude, but I have to warn you. You know how the press are. They won't stop until they get what they want, and when they do, they'll turn it into something ugly."

Nathan thought about what Clay had said, knowing he was right, but at the same time, not able to ignore his growing feelings for Haley and for Jamie.

"You're a good friend, Clay, and you're right about the press, but she's not just some other girl to me. There's something special about her," Nathan said, smiling at the mere thought of her, "And I'm going to protect her no matter what."

"Nate, I'll help you and support you with whatever you want to do, you know that," Clay sighed, running a hand through his hair, "But you know that I worry."

"You worry enough for the both of us, Clay," Nathan laughed, giving him a playful shove, "It'll be okay, I promise. We're keeping things low profile for now, till we figure things out. Just let me do this, alright?"

Clay nodded, and Nathan smiled before jogging out of the gym to his car in the parking lot.

* * *

"Sorry I'm a little late," Nathan said as he sat down at 4:15 on the bench next to Haley, "Had something I needed to take care of."

"It's alright," Haley smiled, "We haven't been waiting very long, and anyway, we've been needing to work on Jamie's patience."

"Hey, I'm patient," Jamie piped in, standing up to look at the two adults, "Can we get ice cream now?"

Haley and Nathan laughed, before getting up to go inside. Jamie walked in between them, taking his mother's hand in one of his, and Nathan's in the other.

This surprised both Nathan and Haley, but neither one said anything, as they ordered their ice cream and returned to sit outside.

As Jamie ate his ice cream, he began to chase the birds that were pecking at the grassy area next to the ice cream shop. Nathan and Haley sat on the bench, watching him.

After finishing her ice cream, Haley was a little worried. Nathan hadn't really spoken since they'd gotten there, and it seemed like he was in a different world.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Haley finally said, nudging Nathan, waking him from his daze.

"What? Sorry," Nathan apologized, looking at her.

"What's going on in that head of yours?" Haley asked, "You've been out of it this whole time."

"It's nothing, really," Nathan tried to assure her, taking her hand in his and intertwining their fingers.

"Why is it that I don't believe you?" Haley questioned, looking at him with her big brown eyes. He couldn't lie to her.

"I was late because I was talking to Clay," Nathan began, biting his lip.

"About…us?" Haley figured, Nathan sighing before nodding, telling her that her assumption was correct.

"He's just worried about me, and the press, and what this could do to you and Jamie too," Nathan explained, "He knows just as well as I do how relentless they can be. I just know how much they've taken over my life, and I don't want to drag you into that."

Haley squeezed his hand, assuring him, "You're not dragging me into anything."

* * *

Thankfully, Winnabow was a small enough town that the streets were quiet while they were there, so they took their time, walking through the park and letting Jamie play for a bit. He even asked Nathan to push him on the swings, a job usually reserved for his mom.

"So what are you going to do now that the camp is over?" Haley asked, sitting on a swing, her bare feet playing in the sand as she watched Jamie on the slides.

Nathan, sitting on the swing adjacent to Haley, quickly replied, "I want to keep volunteering at the youth center. I like the kids there. Plus, Lucas said that I could help him with the Ravens' summer conditioning, and the baby will be born by the time school starts, so I told him I'd help Skills with practices for a while."

* * *

"Yeah, seems like you and he have been spending quite a bit of time together," Haley pointed out.

Nathan turned to look at her, "Is that jealousy I'm sensing?"

"Hey, if you want to spend your time with a guy who still listens his gangsta rap CD collection from high school, be my guest," Haley laughed.

"Haha point taken," Nathan replied, "So, have you talked to Lucas lately? He seems a little…off."

"He said that Brooke is starting to drive him crazy," Haley answered, "She's in her nesting stage, so she's been organizing and deep-cleaning the entire house, and is making Lucas clean out the garage. She even wanted him to vacuum it."

"Pregnant Brooke sounds even more crazy than regular Brooke," Nathan smiled.

"That's debatable," Haley added, as the two laughed, "But she's going to be a great mom. She and Lucas have been so great with Jamie over the years, I know they'll be awesome parents."

"Lucas has had some pretty great role models," said Nathan, as he suddenly became very interested in the sand at his feet, his gaze leaving Haley, "Karen and Keith, well, let's just say I liked being at their house a lot more than my own."

"Well, I know that you'll be a great uncle too," Haley smiled, "From the first day I met him when I was 10 years old, Lucas always talked about his brother Nathan."

"Yeah, we were pretty close when we were kids," Nathan smiled, remembering the sleepovers and the mischief that they'd caused, "I was at his house more than I was at my own. After I moved, we kept in touch, but things were never really the same, until I went to college, got away from my parents. That's when we really got close again."

"Mama, Nathan, come play with me!" Jamie called, waving them over frantically.

"Duty calls," Haley smiled, slipping her shoes back on before running over to her son.

Nathan watched as the two went down the slide together, smiling as he began to realize how strong his feelings were, for both of them, in such a short amount of time.

* * *

The next day, Haley was out baby shopping with Brooke before she had to go into the café. Jamie had insisted on spending the day with Nathan.

"So how's the name debate going?" Haley asked, as they stopped to look at car seats, "Is it still a dead heat?"

"I think we've finally compromised," Brooke sighed, "I'm not supposed to tell anyone just yet but…I think I can make an exception for my best friend. Aunt Haley, you're soon to meet your nephew….Liam."

"Brooke, I love it," Haley awed, "So, you let Lucas name him after Shakespeare."

"Not entirely after Shakespeare," Brooke reiterated, "I looked up the meaning of it and it means diligent, strong-willed warrior. I'd like for my son to have a strong name."

"That's why I named Jamie after the two most important men in my life: my dad and Lucas," Haley recalled, remembering the day she'd chosen the name, and how excited her dad and Lucas had been when she'd told them.

Brooke smiled, "We've decided on two middle names for him, but I want those to be a surprise."

They walked around the store for a few minutes longer, Haley talking about strollers and cribs, before Brooke stopped in the rocking chair section, taking a seat.

"Alright Hales, enough of the jibber jabber," she strongly stated, "What's up with you and Nathan, huh? Seriously, spill! And don't skip out on the sexy details please!"

"Brooke, there's not that much to tell, really," Haley insisted.

"But you like him," Brooke smiled, her signature Cheshire cat smile, "And from the look on your face right now, I'd say you like him a lot."

Brooke was right. Ever since she and Nathan had decided to try things out, she'd had a permanent, genuine smile on her face almost all the time.

* * *

Nathan and Jamie were at the river court, just messing around, having fun, when Jamie held the ball and looked up at Nathan, who was taking a drink of water. Jamie had a serious look on his face.

"So you like my mom?" Jamie asked, causing Nathan to choke on his water, coughing profusely for a minute or so before semi-regaining his composure.

"What are you talking about Jamie?" Nathan asked, raised eyebrow in tow.

"I'm only five, but I'm not blind," he replied, "I saw you holding her hand when we got ice cream. So you like her?"

Despite what Haley had said about not telling Jamie, here, in this moment, with those big blue eyes staring up at him, he couldn't lie. Something that his therapist back in Charlotte had encouraged him to work on was not lying to the people that he cared about.

"I do like your mom, Jamie," Nathan answered honestly, "But things are a little complicated right now, so it's a secret right now."

"Why do you have to keep it a secret?" Jamie asked.

"Well, you remember all of the people taking pictures and interviewing me after the last day of camp?" Nathan began, as Jamie nodded, "Well, they follow me around sometimes, and they can be really mean. And I don't want them to be mean to you or your mom. So for now, I don't want them to know that I like her. Does that make sense?"

Jamie shrugged, "I guess so. But if you like her, and she likes you, doesn't that mean you're dating, like Uncle Jake and Aunt Peyton?"

And at that moment, Nathan knew it was time to take Jamie home.

"Why don't we go talk to your mom, huh Jamie?" Nathan stammered, putting his hand on his shoulder and leading him to the car.

* * *

 **For those of you who were mentioning it in your reviews, Nathan will reveal his secret to Haley in the NEXT chapter!**

 **Hope you all enjoyed the sixth chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	7. Chapter 7

A lot had happened since Nathan and Haley's sit down talk with Jamie. He'd asked a lot of questions too, about dating and relationships, more than a five year old should, Haley thought. She made a mental note to have a little talk with Skills, Junk, and Fergie about what they were doing or saying while Jamie was with them.

Now that Jamie knew about their relationship, Haley knew it was only a matter of time before he spilled the beans, so she and Nathan told the gang while they were having a game night at TRIC after hours. It felt good to be out in the open with their friends, but they were still keeping things quiet in the public's eye.

* * *

Now, it was the 4th of July.

Nathan had invited the whole gang over to his beach house for a barbeque and to watch the fireworks later that night.

"Jamie, honey, stay away from the grill okay?" Haley warned, as she stood on the porch, drink in hand, eying her young son.

"But mom, I'm hanging with the guys," Jamie whined, gesturing to Nathan, Skills, and Mouth, who were all manning the oversized grill mere feet from where Haley was standing.

"Yeah, well the guys won't get a timeout if they don't listen to their moms, now will they?" Haley raised her eyebrow at her son, whose eyes widened, before taking a few big steps backward.

"Good choice," Haley smiled, raising her drink to her lips, locking eyes with Nathan over the rim of her cup, his signature smirk present on his face.

* * *

Nathan quietly excused himself from the grill for a minute, walking towards the patio door, "Hey, Hales, do you wanna help me bring out the rest of the burgers?"

Haley followed Nathan into the kitchen, but before she could even react, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her into the large walk in pantry. Nathan pulled her body flush against his and ran his hands down the sides of her body, his lips finding hers in the fluster. Haley let out a small moan as his tongue teased hers.

Haley felt herself giving into the kiss with every passing second, becoming sure that the only thing keeping her from melting to the ground was Nathan's strong arms wrapped around her waist. She finally managed to pull away to catch her breath, laughing, nervous that someone could come in at any second.

"We can't do this here, right now," Haley smiled, a blush creeping onto her face, as she looked down at her feet.

"We just did," Nathan smiled, his finger lifting her chin to meet his gaze, "Fine then, I'll kiss you later."

He walked out of the pantry and grabbed the plate of burgers from the fridge, before heading back onto the deck.

* * *

Haley stood in the pantry, running her hands through her hair, still trying to catch her breath, when a voice made her jump.

"Couldn't wait for the burgers?" Peyton asked, as she looked in on Haley in the pantry, "Seriously Hales, what are you doing in there?"

"Oh I was just looking for um, the um…" Haley stammered, "The ketchup."

"Sure you were," Peyton smiled, "And I guess Nathan was looking for the ketchup too, huh?"

Haley was clearly embarrassed. Their behavior in the pantry was something hormonal teenagers would do.

"Haley James, stop worrying," Peyton shook her head, putting her hands on the brunette's shoulders, "You are allowed to be blissfully happy. It's been a long time. You deserve this."

"It's been a month P Sawyer," Haley sighed, "I can't breathe when I'm around him, and when I'm not around him I want to be. I'm just…"

Peyton cut her off, "In love."

"I think I am. Which is crazy," Haley started, "It's just this secret relationship and he's going back to Charlotte in a few months. This whole thing just feels like a giant mess."

"Haley Bob James," Peyton got serious, "You think too much."

"I can't let myself and Jamie get attached, if there's already an expiration date," Haley worried, "What if it doesn't work out?"

"What if it does?" said Peyton, leading Haley to where the French doors were open onto the deck, "Haley, he's changed since he's been here. And it's because of you. You two are good together, really good. He's great with Jamie. And it doesn't hurt that he's not terrible looking."

This made Haley laugh, calming down finally as she looked out the door, smiling when she saw Nathan helping Jamie carry plates to the picnic table.

* * *

After eating and playing around in the pool for a while, it was time for the fireworks, as everyone sat on the beach. Jamie especially eager with anticipation as he sat in between Nathan and Haley on a blanket on the sand.

Later, as they were oohing and ahhing over the beauty of the lights flying in the night sky, Haley noticed that Jamie was starting to doze off, his head leaning against her arm.

"I should get him home, it's getting late," Haley sighed, rubbing her hand through the young boy's hair.

"I'll get him," Nathan said, scooping up Jamie, carefully holding him in one arm as to not wake him.

Haley said her goodbyes to her friends before walking back to her car at Nathan's. He carried Jamie in one arm, holding hands with her with the other, as she leaned her head on his arm.

"It was a good day," Haley smiled, as Nathan got Jamie strapped into his booster seat.

"Yeah, it's nice to actually have real friends," Nathan replied, his arms wrapping around her waist, "Not just people who want to be around me because I'm famous."

"They're crazy, and weird, and a pain in the ass sometimes," Haley remarked, "But they're the best. They've all been a huge blessing in my life."

"And what about me?" Nathan questioned, his blue eyes gazing into her brown eyes.

"Well, you've definitely got the whole pain in the ass thing down," Haley laughed.

* * *

"Ouch," Nathan replied, his signature smirk present on his face, before fading fast away, the look in his eye changing as he unwrapped his arms from around her waist, leaning against her car.

"Hey, what's going on?" Haley asked, concern on her face, as she looked at him, "You were kind of quiet during the fireworks."

"I…I kind of overheard you talking to Peyton earlier," Nathan stammered, looking nervous.

"How?" Haley asked.

"I came back to grab some beers for the guys, and I heard you and Peyton talking. I know I shouldn't have listened, but I heard my name and.." Nathan trailed off.

Haley realized what he was saying, "Oh…how much of it did you hear?"

"Pretty much all of it," Nathan continued.

"And…what did you think?" Haley asked nervously.

"It just freaked me out a little bit, because obviously, this whole thing with us means a lot to you," Nathan began, "I just don't want to do anything to hurt you or drive you away. Even though sometimes, I can't help it."

At this point, he finally looked her in the eye again, taking one of her hands in his own, "Just like I can't help that I've fallen in love with you."

Haley looked at him, surprise present in her eyes and on her face, as she had thought he would be completely spooked hearing her say she loved him after a month.

"I love you, Haley," Nathan said, more confidently this time, "And it scares me a little bit, but, there it is."

Haley sighed, "Wow. There it is."

After a few moments of silence between the two, Haley stood on her tiptoes and kissed Nathan, soft and sweet. It was a warm and beautiful kiss, and Nathan felt himself relax into it.

Haley's heart raced as she pulled away from Nathan, "I love you too."

* * *

As the two embraced, Haley pulled back, "You know, you still owe me that secret."

"I guess I do," Nathan sighed, taking her hand and leading her to sit on the front of her car, "I'm sure you've heard the rumors about why I left Tree Hill."

"Yeah, gossip travels fast around here," Haley laughed, "I heard one where your dad was in the mafia, one where your mom was running a prostitution ring, and then there was one about how your parents were secret agents."

"Well, my mom hurt her back in a car accident when I was 8. And she got addicted to her prescription painkillers," Nathan explained, "My father gave her an ultimatum after a year: clean up, go to rehab and get sober, or get a divorce and stay out of our lives. She thought he was bluffing, but he wasn't. He filed for divorce and sole custody, and won. We moved to Charlotte, and the rest is history."

"And what about your mom?" Haley asked, "Where is she now?"

"I don't know, and I don't want to know," Nathan answered, "I had supervised visits until I was 12. Then, she convinced a judge that she was clean and sober, and I spent a couple weekends a month with her, and a few weeks in the summer. That lasted a few years, before she met a new guy, and got hooked again. From then on, she was in and out of jail and rehab, always convincing me that she had changed."

Nathan sighed before continuing, "My senior year, she was living in Charlotte, and I'd taken her pill bottle with me to school, to hide it from her. She interrupted my math class, barging in, going through withdrawals. She ordered me to give her pills back. I gave her a choice: it was either the pills or me. She took the pills and stormed out. I haven't seen her since that day."

"Oh Nathan, I'm so sorry," Haley sighed, rubbing his hand with her thumb.

"Not like I did too much better in the dad department though, but that's a story for another night," Nathan smiled, kissing her forehead, "You should get that tired boy home. I'll call you to make sure you got home okay."

* * *

 **In Charlotte, NC…**

A nervous assistant held a manila envelope in her hand, walking towards her boss' office. Cautiously knocking on the door, a gruff voice told her to come in. She took a deep breath before opening the door.

"Sorry to interrupt sir, but the information you requested was just delivered," she said.

"Well then give it to me," the man angrily retorted, "I don't have all day."

She held out the envelope, and he all but ripped it out of her hand, before she quickly made her way out of his office.

* * *

The man opened the envelope, removing the stack of photos from inside.

He looked through them, pausing to carefully examine a few of them.

"Well, well, well," he sneered, "What do we have here?"

He laid out all the photos onto his desk. They showed Nathan and Haley standing on the deck of the beach house, Nathan and Haley in the pool, a night vision photo of Nathan and Haley kissing by her car, as well as several shots of the two at Karen's, and even a shot of the two in Hayden at the ice cream shop and the park.

He was glad he had paid the private investigator to tail Nathan. Once he saw the news report that Nathan was "helping out" at that small town diner, he knew he had to keep eyes on him. And once the investigator told him that there was a girl, he was furious. All this work to fix his reputation, and Nathan decides to shack up with some gold-digger single mom.

He picked up his phone and dialed an all-too-familiar number.

"I want you to find out everything you can about this Haley James," he said, "Dig deep. I want all the dirt. And I mean EVERYTHING."

* * *

 **One week later…**

Nathan and Haley were at TRIC after hours with Brooke, Lucas, Jake, and Peyton. Mouth and Millie had agreed to watch Jamie for the night, allowing Haley and Nathan some alone time. Or, it would have been alone time, had Brooke and Peyton not begged her to join them at TRIC.

The gang was drinking (sans Brooke) and laughing and having a good time, when Nathan's cell phone, which had been buzzing all night with calls from Clay, who he'd been ignoring, went off yet again.

"Maybe you should answer it," Haley offered, "If he keeps calling, it must be important."

* * *

Nathan answered the phone, walking away from the group as he talked to Clay.

"Nathan, where the hell have you been?" Clay yelled, "I've been trying to call you for hours."

"Clay, woah, man, I'm sorry," Nathan apologized, "I was out with some friends. What's going on?"

"Look, dude, I don't know who, or how, but someone released photos of you and Haley to the press," Clay explained, "They know, and it's all over the news and it'll for sure be front page news. I'll try to do as much damage control as I can, but you have got to lay low man, alright?"

Nathan felt like his heart had stopped beating for a split second.

"I knew that this was always a possibility, but I was hoping it wouldn't happen like this," Nathan sighed, running a hand through his hair, "I wanted us to be the ones to break the news with an Instagram photo or something."

"Well, it's too late now Nate," Clay replied, "I'll do what I can, but there's something about these pictures. They look like surveillance photos, and when I spoke to the press, they said an anonymous outside source sent them the photos."

* * *

Nathan walked back to the group, and immediately noticed that they were all looking at their phones.

Haley looked up from hers, tears brimming in her eyes, "They know. And they're calling me….they're calling me a gold digger."

Nathan wrapped his arms around Haley in a hug, "Clay just told me. He's going to try to do some damage control, and some digging to see who released the photos. I'm so sorry Hales. I didn't want you to have to deal with any of this."

"Hales, it'll be alright," Lucas spoke up, "We're all here for you, both of you."

"Thanks Luke," Haley said, still clinging to Nathan, "But who would do this?"

* * *

 **So, who do you think is the mystery man with the photos of Nathan and Haley?**

 **Sorry if this chapter moved rather quickly, but I had a lot of plot points that needed to be addressed in order to move this story along!**

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed the seventh chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	8. Chapter 8

"Reporting live from Tree Hill, North Carolina, I'm Josie Kent. After two months of being back in his hometown doing charity work, photos have been released showing that Nathan Scott has a new woman in his life. Sources that say that the woman is Haley James, 22, owner of the café that Nathan was helping out in. My sources also tell me that James is a single mother to a five year old son. Scott's escapades in Tree Hill have got everyone wondering: is this all for real, or is just a publicity stunt to improve his reputation even further? Only time will tell, but keep your TVs on this station for up-to-date news on the NBA's maybe-not-so bad boy anymore, Nathan Scott."

* * *

It disgusted Haley to see the headlines in the tabloids lately.

 _ **Nathan Scott: Playing House?**_

 _ **Nathan and Haley: The Fake Relationship Revealed**_

* * *

Ever since the photos of her and Nathan had been released, Haley's life had been nothing short of a living hell. She hadn't been able to leave her home, with the press practically taking up residence on her doorstep. Jamie had been staying with Brooke and Lucas, because Haley knew he wouldn't be able to stay cooped up inside, and she didn't want there to be any risk of him being photographed.

Right now, Haley was grateful for her friends. Junk and Fergie had been helping out at the café, since Haley had only been there a couple days out of the past week. She knew that there were also paparazzi camped out at Nathan's beach house, so they had only communicated through FaceTime, phone calls, and text messages during the past week.

Thankfully, there had been a scandal in Hollywood. Nude photos of a bunch of celebrities in LA had been released, and as soon as that story broke, all the reporters in Tree Hill packed up and left town, eager to catch the latest gossip. This allowed Haley and Nathan to be off "house arrest" finally, after more than a week.

* * *

Haley was now standing outside Nathan's door, still worried and nervous, but wanting to see him. Jamie stood next to her, holding her hand while anxiously knocking on the door.

"Well, if it isn't my two favorite people," Nathan smiled, as Jamie let go of his mother's hand to give him a hug.

"Nathan, I missed you!" Jamie exclaimed.

"I missed you too Jimmy Jam," Nathan replied, ruffling the young boy's hair, "And guess what? I think there's a chocolate bar in the kitchen with your name on it."

"Sweet!" Jamie said, running off into the kitchen.

"And now you're fueling my child with sugar," Haley laughed, "Nice reunion."

"Could be better," Nathan replied slyly, reaching out to take Haley in his arms, "Ugh, I'm so sorry about all of this Hales. I know this week hasn't been easy for you."

"I'm pretty sure that's the seventh time you've apologized to me this week about this," Haley sighed, her arms draped around Nathan's neck, "I'm ok. Jamie's ok. The press are gone, for now, and we'll deal with the rest when it comes."

"Have I told you lately how much I love you?" Nathan smiled, looking into her eyes.

"A time or two," Haley answered, as they shared a short kiss before Jamie came back into the room, chocolate covering his face.

* * *

"Mama, what's a g-go-gol-gold di-dig," Jamie began to ask, sounding out the words on the front page of one of the tabloids that featured one of the released photos of Nathan and Haley.

Haley and Nathan quickly detached themselves from each other, as Haley grabbed the magazine out of Jamie's hands.

"Jamie, where did you get this?" Haley frantically asked.

"There was a bunch of them in the garbage," Jamie replied, "Why is there a picture of you and Nathan on the magazine?"

Haley sighed, turning to look at Nathan, hoping for some back up and some answers.

"I had Clay buy all the copies he could find," Nathan said nervously, his hands in his pockets, "I thought it would help."

"Jamie, sweetie," Haley began, bending down to his level and placing her hands on his shoulders, "Remember when you and Nathan talked about how the people taking pictures can be mean? Well, they weren't telling the truth. But, now they're gone and everything's okay."

"I thought you were always supposed to tell the truth Mama," Jamie looked up at Haley.

"Oh my sweet boy, you are always supposed to tell the truth," Haley smiled, "Some people just forget that sometimes."

* * *

After eating lunch and watching a movie, Jamie was on the deck, bouncing a basketball, as Haley and Nathan sat watching him.

"I was going to ask," Haley began, "If you could watch Jamie for a few hours. I really need to get back to the café, make sure things are going ok while I've been gone."

"Yeah, it'll be good for me and the boy to spend some time together," Nathan smiled, "I was actually going to work out today. Gotta stay in shape. I think he can help me out.

* * *

Everyone was delighted to see Haley back at the café. She got to hear all the stories about how business had boomed with all the press hanging around all day, every day the past week. Now, though, it was slow, so she sent Anna home, since she'd be closing Karen's early for the evening. Karen and Keith were coming home tonight, and the whole gang was throwing a little celebratory dinner in their honor at the café.

Haley was at the counter, only a few customers seated, when she heard the familiar jingle of the bells on the door. She looked up to see a woman, in her early 40's, with blonde hair and blue eyes. She looked nervous, as she walked up to the counter and hesitantly took a seat.

"Welcome to Karen's Café," Haley smiled, "What can I get for you?"

"Just a coffee please," the woman replied, "Black."

Haley got the coffee, setting the mug in front of her.

"So what brings you to Tree Hill?" Haley asked, receiving a questioning look from the woman, "It's a small town. Everyone knows everyone, and I've never seen you before. So where are you from? US Weekly, People, National Enquirer?"

"I'm not a reporter," the woman stammered, "I'm just here looking for Nathan Scott. He's…an old friend."

"Everyone's looking for him these days," Haley smiled, "Unfortunately, he's not here. But I could tell him you stopped by."

"No, no that's alright," the woman replied, getting up out of her seat, leaving a five dollar bill on the counter, "I should go. Thank you for the coffee."

However, in her haste to leave, a small piece of paper fell out of her purse as she swung it onto her shoulder. She was already gone by the time Haley got to it and picked it up, and when she walked out the door, the woman had disappeared.

As Haley held the paper in her hands, she realized that it was a small photograph. The boy in the photo couldn't have been older than 8 or 9. He had dark hair, and Haley immediately recognized the ice blue eyes he had has well. As she turned the photograph over, the cursive writing on the back said, "Nathan, 3rd grade, age 8."

Haley sighed, leaning against the door of the café as she realized that the woman who had been here was Nathan's mother, Deb.

* * *

Nathan had taken Jamie down to the boardwalk with his scooter. He'd rigged up an apparatus that tied Jamie's scooter to him, allowing him to pull Jamie. He was banned from summer practices, and the first two preseason games with his punishment, which meant he had to work out on his own.

Jamie was a good "coach" as he called himself, even semi-forcing Nathan to run up a large hill towards the end of the workout. As they returned home, Nathan was dead tired. Jamie, however, was full of energy.

"That was fun!" he exclaimed, jumping on the couch, "What are we going to do now Nathan?"

Jamie was so wound up, he ran out to the back porch to grab his basketball, returning with it, and looking up at Nathan.

"Why don't you set up NBA Live, I'll go take a shower, and then we can play, alright?" Nathan said, not realizing how much work a kid really was. They didn't have an off switch.

* * *

Haley got back to the beach house, letting herself in with the key Nathan had given her, only to find the two boys on the couch, both yelling at the television. She laughed when she realized they were playing that basketball video game that Jamie insisted on playing whenever he was at Lucas' house.

"Looks like you two had some fun today," she said, as she looked around, seeing the house was a mess.

"Hey Hales," Nate said, not taking his eyes off the screen.

"Hi Mama," Jamie also said, also not moving his gaze.

"That's the welcome I get?" Haley scoffed, "Maybe I should just go to the homecoming party by myself."

"Karen and Shmeesh are home?" Jamie perked up at the sound of the party, allowing Nathan to score the winning basket in their game.

Once Jamie got over the fact that he'd lost, Nathan questioned the name Shmeesh that Jamie had said.

"When Jamie was first learning how to talk, he could not, for the life of him, say Keith," Haley laughed, "His first time saying it, it was shmeesh, and it's stuck ever since."

"It'll be good to see them," Nathan said, "It's been too long."

* * *

"Mama, can I have a drink of water?" Jamie asked, as the three of them sat on the couch, watching a basketball game of course.

"Yeah, sweetie, I'll go get one," Haley replied, standing up, "Nathan, do you want to come help me?"

Nathan looked puzzled, but regardless, he followed her into the kitchen.

"What's up Hales?" he questioned, as she filled a cup up with water.

"Nothing," Haley nervously replied, "Do I need an excuse to want to be alone with my boyfriend or something?"

"I guess not," Nathan said, "So how'd it go at the café? Did Junk and Fergie burn the place down?"

"No, everything was…um, fine," Haley answered, seeming a little standoff-ish.

Nathan sighed, "Haley, you've got that look."

"What look?" Haley asked innocently.

"That look that you get when you want to tell me something, but don't really want to tell me," Nathan responded.

"No I don't" Haley said, "And you shouldn't know that look yet."

"Hales, what is it?" Nathan asked.

"Ugh," Haley sighed, "Fine, this woman came by the café today, looking for you. She said she was an old friend."

"Come on Haley," Nathan laughed, "You know the paparazzi will say anything and everything to find me. That's old news."

"She wasn't a reporter Nathan," Haley took a deep breath, "I think it was your mom."

Nathan's eyes grew wide as she said this, and he immediately tensed up, "How do you know?"

"She freaked when I said that I could let you know she stopped by," Haley continued, "Ran out, but on her way, she dropped this."

Haley took the photo out of her pocket, handing it to Nathan. He looked at it, turning it over to see his mother's script on the back. All too soon, though, he tossed the photo onto the counter.

"Look, even if she is here to see me, I have nothing to say to her," Nathan shrugged, "She's wasting her time."

"Nathan, she seemed really genuine," Haley replied, expressing concern, "Like she really wanted to see you. From what you've told me, it's been a long time."

Nathan slipped his arms around Haley's waist, "Please let this go, Haley. I don't want to ruin anything. It's been a good day, and we're going to go the party and have fun. Don't worry about her, okay?"

Haley hugged Nathan, though she couldn't get the image of Deb out of her mind.

* * *

The party was in full swing at Karen's, just waiting for the guests of honor to arrive. Lucas had gone to pick them up from the airport, leaving a very pregnant Brooke in the care of Haley.

"Haley James, I don't know how you were pregnant in high school, and worked here, and were valedictorian, and volunteered in the tutor center," Brooke rattled on, "I can barely get myself dressed in the morning without being exhausted."

"I had to Brooke, for Jamie, and for me," Haley replied, "I didn't just want to be another statistic. Another stereotypical girl who gets pregnant in high school and ruins her life. That wasn't going to be me. Trust me, I'm definitely exhausted now."

"At least now you have Nate to help out," Brooke smirked, gesturing over to where Nathan was helping Jamie get a plate of food from the buffet, "He's really good with him."

"You should've seen him after taking care of Jamie alone for a couple hours today," Haley laughed, "But I don't know Brooke. He's supposed to go back to Charlotte soon, and I don't know what's going to happen then."

"Just live in the now Haley," Brooke smiled, "You worry too much."

* * *

The sound of the bells on the door got everyone's attention, as Lucas walked in first, revealing his mom and dad following closely behind him. Everyone cheered and rushed to hug Karen and Keith, who had been away traveling on a second honeymoon/getaway/Haley and Lucas had forced them to leave Tree Hill for some alone time.

"Haley!" Karen exclaimed, as she wrapped her in a hug, "The place looks great. I told you you'd be fine."

"You know me better than I do," Haley smiled, as Jamie came running up.

"Karen!" he exclaimed, jumping into her arms, "I missed you!"

"I missed you too little man, look how big you've gotten," Karen replied, kissing the young boy on the cheek, before he moved on to Keith.

"Shmeesh!" Jamie cried, as the two did their "secret" handshake, before hugging.

"How's my all-star?" Keith asked.

"Nathan taught me the fadeaway and my team won our game!" Jamie rambled, as he began to tell Keith all about Nathan and basketball, and the summer he'd been having.

"Well, look who the cat dragged in!" Karen slyly said, as Nathan walked up to her, "How long's it been? Four, five years?"

"It's good to see you too Karen," Nathan smiled, hugging his aunt.

"So am I safe to assume that Lucas was telling us the truth?" Karen asked, "You two…!"

"Yes Karen," Haley blushed, as Nathan took her hand.

* * *

The party was still going, as Nathan sat at a table with Keith. Haley and Karen couldn't resist going in the back to talk about ordering and payroll.

"So how long have you two been together?" Keith asked, taking a drink of his beer.

"A couple of months," Nathan replied, doing the same.

Keith continued, "She sure is something special Nate, I hope you know that."

"Don't worry Uncle Keith, I know," Nathan smiled.

"And if you hurt her, you'll be disowned from the family. I hope you know that too," Keith replied with a straight face, before chuckling.

Nathan laughed as well, "I got a similar speech from Lucas and Brooke months ago, and Karen about an hour ago. You don't have to worry."

* * *

A little while later, Haley was standing, talking to Keith, Karen, Brooke, and Lucas. Haley hadn't seen Nathan in a little while, but figured he was with Skills, Mouth, and Jamie, causing some sort of chaos.

As Karen listened to Brooke talking about some sketches of clothing designs that she'd done, her phone rang. Her expression changed, and she hurried out the door to take the phone call.

About halfway through another one of Keith's magnificent stories about the road trip, Haley felt a warm hand slip around her waist, and a pair of lips on top of her head.

Haley turned slightly, she couldn't contain her smile when she saw those blue eyes looking back at her.

"And where have you been?" Haley sighed, leaning into his embrace.

"Just wrangling the little man, trying to keep him out of the chocolate fountain," Nathan laughed.

"And how did that go?" Haley asked, turning her head to look at him.

"Yeah, you might have to buy him some new clothes," he grimaced, gesturing towards a now-chocolate covered Jamie.

"You're lucky he starts school soon," Haley playfully punched Nathan's arm, "But thanks for trying."

* * *

The party was winding down, as just the main gang was left: Lucas, Brooke, Jake, Peyton, Skills, Junk, Fergie, Mouth, Millie, Nathan, Jamie, Haley, Karen, and Keith.

Peyton approached Haley, who was trying to wipe Jamie's hands and face to get him ready to go home, to no avail.

"Haley, why don't Jake and I take Jamie back to your place, get him cleaned up, and in bed?" Peyton offered, "You should stay, enjoy the rest of the party."

"Are you sure?" Haley looked at Peyton, concerned, but grateful.

"Of course," Peyton smiled, "It'll be good practice."

Haley gave her a questioning look, before Peyton quickly fired back, "For the future. The far-off, distant future."

And so Peyton and Jake walked out of the café, a sleepy, sticky Jamie in tow.

* * *

The rest of the gang was beginning to help clean up, as the bells jingled on the door, and everyone turned to see who it was.

Haley figured that Peyton had forgotten something, but was astonished at who she saw standing nervously in the doorway of the café.

Deb.

Nathan was the first to speak up.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he questioned, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

"I wanted to see you, sweetheart," Deb replied, wiping her sweaty palms on her pants.

Nathan sighed angrily, "Don't call me that."

The rest of the gang saw this as the time to make their exits, hastily moving out the door, leaving Karen, Keith, Haley, Nathan, and Deb in the café.

* * *

At this point, Nathan was furious. All of his anger management counseling was going out the window as he looked at the woman who had chosen drugs over her own son.

"Did you tell her to come?" Nathan turned to look at Karen, the rage in his eyes scaring Haley. She'd never seen him like this, except in the bar fights on TV.

"Nathan, calm down," Haley tried to say, placing her hand on his arm, but it seemed like he wasn't even listening as he shrugged out of her touch.

"Karen," the one word echoing out of his mouth as he turned to look at his aunt, who was looking at him, stone-faced and tough.

"She's your mother, Nathan," Karen replied, "She called me, and I told her you were here."

"Well, you shouldn't have," Nathan retorted, "Because her son isn't here. She doesn't have a son anymore. Come on Hales, let's go."

However, Haley stood right where she was, not wanting to be with him when he was this angry.

"I think I'll walk home," Haley said, as Nathan looked at her, that fire still evident in his eyes.

She saw his eyes change for just a moment, pained by her rejection, but then going right back to full of anger.

He stormed out of the café, pushing past his mother, who was now in tears, leaving his aunt, uncle, and girlfriend to clean up the "mess" that he'd just made.

* * *

 **Charlotte, NC**

Dan Scott sat in his office, looking over the file that the private investigator had sent him on Haley James. He flashed his devilish grin when he read some of the details that the PI had dug up. This would help him immensely. He was not about to let his son mess up his life and his career to go play house with some gold digger who wanted a baby daddy.

Dan dialed his assistant on the phone, "Get me the phone number for Sharon at PEOPLE," he said, "I have something she's going to be very interested in for her front page."

* * *

 **So, Dan is the mystery man who sold the photos to the press. And now, he's going to release information about Haley to PEOPLE magazine. What will it be? Any guesses?**

 **SOO sorry that it's been a little bit since I've updated! I've just been super busy with work!**

 **Hope you all enjoyed the eighth chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	9. Chapter 9

Haley hurried out of the café, into the warm summer night. Nathan was long gone, who knows where. His anger towards his mother had frightened her. Haley knew that his mother had abandoned him, but she was his mother. She couldn't wrap her head around his long-harbored hatred of her. He had a mother who, based solely on her actions tonight, seemed to care about him.

As she began to walk down the street, headed home, a voice called out from behind her.

"Haley, wait," Deb called, hurrying to catch up with her.

"Deb, I don't think this is exactly the best time," Haley retorted.

Deb sighed, "Look, I'm staying at the bed n' breakfast over on Elm. Can I walk with you? We don't have to talk if you don't want to."

Haley looked at the woman, who still looked visibly upset from her confrontation with Nathan, "Ok."

* * *

The two women walked in silence for a minute or two before Deb spoke up.

"So you and Nathan have been together for a few months now?" she asked, hoping Haley would answer.

Haley didn't answer for a few seconds, before she couldn't take the silence anymore, "Yeah."

"And your son? I saw a picture of him at Karen's. He's adorable," Deb smiled.

"Thank you," Haley politely replied.

"I know what it's like, being a young mom," Deb continued, "I had Nathan when I was 19. I had no idea what I was doing. But I wasn't as lucky as you've been. I didn't have the support system. My parents practically disowned me when they found out I was pregnant. All of my friends were too busy with drugs and alcohol to spend time with me. All I had were Dan and Nathan."

"Look, Deb, I don't need you to defend yourself to me, alright?" Haley snapped, before shaking her head, "I'm sorry. It's been a crazy night and I'm just worried about Nathan."

"So am I," Deb assured her, "Look, Haley, I know I have made too many mistakes over the years, but I've changed. I swear to you, I haven't touched pills or alcohol or any drug in three years. I'm sober. I've been in therapy. I've spent two and a half years in prison. All I want is a relationship with my son."

"Even if I wanted to, Deb, I can't help you," Haley replied, "This is between you and Nathan. It's none of my business whether you're here or not."

"Well, it looks like I'll be staying in town for a while," Deb said, "I've been living in Fayetteville for the past couple years. I worked at a furniture store, but it went out of business. When I saw the news about Nathan, I started planning to come here, to see him. But I got scared, which is why it took me so long to come. When I called Karen, she said you guys were shorthanded at the café. She offered me a job, if it was okay with you."

As much as Haley wanted to tell Deb off, she couldn't. The woman sounded completely sincere. Karen trusted her, and Haley trusted Karen's judgement. Plus, she couldn't deny the fact that they needed help at the café. With Deb working there, she'd have more time to spend with Nathan and Jamie.

They were now in front of the bed and breakfast, as Haley stopped and turned towards Deb.

"I'll think about it," Haley nodded, "Thank you, for walking with me and telling me all of that. I can tell how much you love Nathan."

"Thank you Haley," said Deb, "I just wish he could see that."

* * *

The next morning, Haley and Jamie were in their pajamas, putting together a puzzle in the living room when the doorbell rang.

Haley opened the door, to see a large bouquet of flowers, which then were lowered so she could see the face of the person holding them: Nathan.

"Hey Hales," he looked nervous, "Can I come in?"

"Um, yeah," Haley replied, as he made his way in and handed her the flowers. He was about to speak when Jamie ran in, clinging to Nathan's legs.

"Nathan!" he cried, "Did you come over to play? Can we go to the river court?"

"Why don't you go get dressed and put your shoes on," Nathan said, "I need to talk to your mom for a minute."

Jamie ran to his room, leaving Haley and Nathan alone.

* * *

"Thanks, for the flowers," Haley managed a small smile, putting them in a vase with water.

"I wanted to apologize for last night," Nathan sighed, "I shouldn't have blown up, and I'm sorry that you had to see me like that. It's just hard. I feel like I take a step forward, and then I screw up, and take two steps back."

"You scared me last night, Nathan," Haley said honestly, "If you can act that way towards your mother, then who's to say…"

"I'm sorry I scared you, Hales," Nathan replied, "But she stopped being my mother when she chose drugs over me."

"I'm not saying what she did is right, but she's here," Haley sighed, "She's making the effort. She seems really sincere."

"She only comes around when she wants something," said Nathan, "Haley, if you abandoned Jamie, would you expect him to forgive you?"

"I don't even want to think about that, Nathan, let alone talk about it," Haley fired back, "This is about you and your mom. She talked to me yesterday. She said she's been sober for three years."

"And that means that we should just play happy family?" questioned Nathan.

"No, but I think you should give her a chance, while she's here," Haley replied, "Your mom is here, Nathan. She loves you and all she wants is her son back."

"You said while she's here," Nathan realized, "Did she say how long she was staying?"

"Karen offered her a job at the café, if I'm okay with it," Haley replied, "She lost her job in Fayetteville a few months ago and we could use the help. I'm going to tell Karen that she should hire her."

Nathan sighed, running his hand through his hair before closing the distance between them, pulling Haley into his embrace.

"God, I don't know how you can be so strong and level-headed about this," he said, "What would I do without your voice of reason?"

"It's a gift," Haley smiled, as Nathan brushed his lips over hers.

"I'll talk to my mom, Hales," Nathan replied, "But I'm not going to forgive her. Not yet."

* * *

 **Two weeks later…August 8** **th**

Haley was at the café, working with Deb. She had been doing really well in the past few weeks. She was great with the customers. Some of the old-timers began to flirt with her more than they would with Haley.

Jamie and Nathan were seated at a table, eating lunch. The two of them had been spending a lot of time together, as well as time with Haley. Deb walked over, filling up their glasses of water, smiling at the two of them, as Nathan found himself smiling back. The two had talked about a week ago, at Nathan's beach house, to clear the air, and for Nathan to get some much-needed answers.

* * *

" _How am I ever supposed to trust you again, Mom?" Nathan questioned defensively, "You chose drugs over your own son. You abandoned me."_

" _Nathan, I am so sorry. I know that an apology won't make up for all the mistakes I've made, but it's a start," Deb replied, "I've been working hard, to prove to you that this time, I won't mess up."_

" _And to top it all off, you left me with Dan," Nathan continued, "You knew what he was like, how he could get. I spent my entire life playing basketball, getting good, so that I could finally be rid of him."_

" _Your father, I mean, Dan, he didn't even try to help me Nathan," Deb retorted, "He told me that I had to clean up my own mess. I know that he was abusive and I'm sorry that I let you experience that alone."_

" _Nothing's going to change overnight," Nathan sighed, running his hands through his hair, "I can't make you any promises. It's not like I can just pretend that nothing ever happened."_

" _I know, and I'm not asking you to," said Deb, "All I'm asking for is a chance."_

" _We'll see," Nathan replied."_

* * *

As Deb walked back behind the counter, the phone rang. She answered it, with a smile, but her smile quickly faded as she listened to the caller.

"Yes, Haley is here," she said, listening to the caller's response, "Alright, I'll tell her."

She hung up the phone, turning to Haley, who was now next to her, "That was Lucas. Brooke's in the hospital. She's having the baby."

"Oh my gosh," Haley replied, wide eyed. Everyone knew that Brooke and Haley were practically sisters.

"You should go," Deb encouraged, "Really. Anna gets here in an hour. We can hold down the fort while you're gone. You should be there."

Haley sighed, "Thank you Deb."

* * *

Nathan sat in a chair at the hospital, as Haley paced back and forth. They'd dropped off Jamie at the youth center with Millie on the way, grateful to have such amazing friends who were always willing to help out.

They sat in the waiting room, with Keith and Karen, Jake and Peyton, and Skills. Brooke was not close to either of her parents, so they were not present. It had been a few hours, before Lucas came walking into the room, beaming from ear to ear.

"It's a boy!" he finally said, as everyone got up to hug the proud new father.

The group headed back to Brooke's recovery room, technically breaking the rules of how many people could be in the room, but no one seemed to care.

* * *

Brooke laid in the bed, a small blue wrapped bundle in her arms.

"Brooke, he's perfect," Haley smiled, as she leaned into Nathan's embrace.

"What's the little dude's name?" Skills piped up, as everyone turned to look at him, "What? I know ya'lls were thinking the same thing too."

Lucas sat on the edge of the bed next to Brooke, as they looked at each other and smiled before Brooke spoke up, "We decided to name this little one after the two most important men in our lives. Everyone, we would like to introduce you to Liam Nathan Keith Scott."

Nathan was shocked at the announcement. Haley looked up at him, smiling, tears brimming in her eyes.

He knew how close Brooke, Lucas, and he were, but he had never thought that they would do this: name their child after him. He suddenly felt this weight of responsibility, but not a bad weight, a good one.

"Thank you guys," Nathan finally managed to say, "It means a lot."

* * *

Everyone took a turn holding baby Liam before they left, until Nathan was the only one who hadn't.

Haley held the tiny baby, talking softly to him as Nathan sat next to her.

"It's hard to believe that Jamie was ever this small," Haley said quietly, as Brooke had finally managed to fall asleep.

Lucas had run home to grab a few things, leaving Nathan and Haley to watch baby Liam.

Just then, baby Liam began to squirm, his face turning red, as a small squawk echoed from his lips.

Haley immediately stood up, bouncing the baby boy lightly, shushing him as she said, "There's no reason to fuss. No, there's no reason to fuss baby. Shhh, you've got to let your mama get some sleep okay?"

This quieted baby Liam almost immediately, as he quickly quieted, looking up at Haley with his dark eyes.

"Woah," Nathan whispered, shocked, "How did you do that?

"Lots of practice," Haley smiled, before joining Nathan again, "Do you want to hold him?"

Nathan suddenly seemed really nervous and jumpy, as he began to whisper something about feeling a cold coming on.

Haley looked at him, a knowing look in her eyes, "Nathan Scott, you've never held a baby before, have you?"

"I'm an only child Hales," Nathan defended, "He's just so small. I don't want to drop him or hurt him or something."

"You are his uncle and you will be just fine," Haley replied, as she transferred the baby into Nathan's arms, "Just make sure you support his head…and look, you, Nathan Scott, are holding a baby, and you don't look too bad either."

Nathan smiled, as he looked down at his nephew in his arms. The boy was still awake, surprisingly, looking up at him. Nathan even thought he saw him smile.

"It's been a good day," Haley sighed, as she placed her hand on Nathan's thigh and rested her head on his shoulder, looking at baby Liam.

* * *

Baby Liam was home from the hospital now, a few days later. As expected, Lucas and Brooke were getting little to no sleep, which left them cranky and irritable.

Nathan was helping Skills with the basketball team, as Lucas was with Brooke and the baby. School started in a week, and the team would be doing conditioning and open gyms a couple times a week up until basketball season.

The gala fundraiser for the youth center was in two weeks, and the whole town was helping out, getting things ready for it. Nathan had secured a music act, but wouldn't tell anyone who it was. Haley was suspicious, and tried various methods to get him to tell her, but none succeeded.

Nathan and Haley had grown a lot closer over the past months. The unlikely couple was in love, and happy, though Hollywood, and Dan Scott, were keen to break the two up.

* * *

It had been a busy night at Karen's Café, but Haley was ready to head home. She'd sent Chef Jeff and Adam home already, choosing to lock up by herself. Nathan was waiting for her back at the house. He'd watched Jamie, and the two planned to stay in tonight and watch a movie.

As she walked out the door and locked it from the outside, though, cameras began to flash and voices streamed in from everywhere.

"Haley, is this just you trying to get famous again?" one person asked.

"Is your relationship with Nathan real?" another questioned.

Microphones were being pushed towards her face, as she threw her hands in front of her face to protect it from the flashes of the cameras.

"Has this been your plan since Chris Keller left you?" someone shouted, "Is Nathan just the next step on your ladder climb to fame?"

* * *

Suddenly, Haley was grabbed and pulled out from the circle. The cameramen and reporters were pushed to the side, as Peyton hurried Haley to her car. She had been leaving the music store across the street, and seen the commotion.

Haley was distraught, visibly shaking, as Peyton drove her home.

"Are you alright?" she, asked, looking at Haley.

"How did they know about Chris?" Haley asked, tears streaming down her face, "This can't get out, Peyton. It can't. What will it do to Jamie? And Nathan?"

"Everything will be okay Haley," Peyton assured her, "But I thought you told Nathan about Chris."

"I did, but, I couldn't tell him the whole story, Peyton," Haley explained, "I told him that the label offered both of us the tour, which they did, but I told Nathan that I said no and Chris left."

"You need to tell him everything, Haley, before he finds out some other way," Peyton insisted, pulling up in front of Haley's house.

* * *

Haley opened her front door, seeing Nathan waiting for her on the couch.

"Hey beautiful," he smiled, before noticing that she'd been crying. He immediately got up and walked over to her, "What's wrong?"

"There was press when I left the café," Haley sniffled, "They were in my face, asking me questions about you and Chris and I panicked. Peyton saw and got me out, drove me home."

"Chris?' Nathan questioned, before wrapping his arms around her, "Haley, I'm so sorry that you have to go through this. I never wanted this for you, for us."

"I know," Haley sighed, before looking up at him, "But I think we need to talk…..about Chris."

* * *

PEOPLE magazine was hot off the press, the cover displaying two photos: on the left was one of the shots of Haley and Nathan from the beach, they were looking at each other and smiling. The photo on the right, however, was from Haley's old MySpace page, of her and Chris. They were sitting against the brick wall of the school. Chris was playing the guitar, intently looking at it, while Haley was smiling at him.

The cover read:

 **HALEY JAMES: HUNTING FOR FAME?**

" **THE TRUTH BEHIND HALEY'S RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIS KELLER"**

* * *

 **SOOO sorry for the length between updates! Posting this chapter now because I am going out of town for the holiday weekend and will not have access to wifi!**

 **I know this is not my best quality work, but I wanted to get a chapter out for all of my loyal readers!**

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed the ninth chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	10. Chapter 10

*****FYI READERS*****

 **I made a few changes to Chapters 2, 5, and 9. I decided to go a slightly different way with a certain plot point, so if you would like, go check out the changes. They're just small details, but they will be very important!**

**His name is Jamie Lucas James, named after his grandfather (James James) **

* * *

 _ **Previously…**_

Haley opened her front door, seeing Nathan waiting for her on the couch.

"Hey beautiful," he smiled, before noticing that she'd been crying. He immediately got up and walked over to her, "What's wrong?"

"There was press when I left the café," Haley sniffled, "They were in my face, asking me questions about you and Chris and I panicked. Peyton saw and got me out, drove me home."

"Chris?' Nathan questioned, before wrapping his arms around her, "Haley, I'm so sorry that you have to go through this. I never wanted this for you, for us."

"I know," Haley sighed, before looking up at him, "But I think we need to talk…..about Chris."

PEOPLE magazine was hot off the press, the cover displaying two photos: on the left was one of the shots of Haley and Nathan from the beach, they were looking at each other and smiling. The photo on the right, however, was from Haley's old MySpace page, of her and Chris. They were sitting against the brick wall of the school. Chris was playing the guitar, intently looking at it, while Haley was smiling at him.

The cover read:

 **Haley James: Hunting for Fame?**

" **The truth behind Haley's past with musician Chris Keller"**

* * *

"Haley, what's going on?" Nathan asked, looking visibly concerned.

"I think we should sit down," Haley nervously stammered, taking his hand and leading him to the couch, taking a deep breath as she sat down, "When I told you that secret at The Docks, I didn't exactly tell you the whole story."

Nathan's brow furrowed, confused, "What are you talking about Hales?"

"I told you that Chris and I were together, and that when we were offered the tour, he said yes, and I said no, that he abandoned me and Jamie," Haley began, "But that's not the whole truth. And now that the press seems to know what happened somehow, I can't let you find out from the tabloids. I wanted to tell you myself."

"Tell me what?" Nathan asked, now growing slightly agitated at his girlfriend's news.

"I knew Chris from school. He was a senior when I was a junior. He heard me singing in the tutor center and that's how it all started. Chris and I did perform together, a few times, at Karen's and some local contests. The summer before my senior year, we got offered to do a west coast tour with The Wreckers and Gavin DeGraw. I was 17 and starstruck, and we both went. It was a dream. An 8 week tour up and down the west coast. Everything was incredible, but after our first show, we all decided to celebrate. I had never drank in my life, and I got completely wasted and…"

Haley took a deep breath, her hands shaking and her voice trembling as she continued.

"I thought that he cared about me. We'd known each other for years and everyone thought he was a jerk, but in that moment, he seemed different. That night, on an empty tour bus, I lost my virginity to Chris Keller," Haley managed to stammer, her voice still shaking, "About a month later, I was feeling really sick. I thought it was the flu that everyone had been getting, close quarters on a tour bus and everything, but then I was late. Finding out you're pregnant at 17 in a strange city by yourself. That's one of the scariest things I've ever experienced."

Nathan was in shock hearing all of this. Never had he imagined that this was what had happened.

"After our concert in Seattle, I told Chris I was pregnant," Haley said, her voice now barely above a whisper, tears streaming down her face, "And he told me that it was my problem. He said that it wasn't his, that it could be anyone's on the tour. He said that I was just another stupid slutty high school girl who would open her legs to anyone."

Nathan was now getting angry, not at Haley, but at this son of a bitch Chris Keller. How dare he treat Haley like this, like it was her fault? He reached for her hand, which was still shaking, but calmed slightly at his touch.

* * *

"I was in shock, numb to everything. I heard Chris talking crap about me to the tour manager, spewing some stupid lie, so I quit. I packed my bags and came back to Tree Hill," Haley sighed, "He stayed on the tour, but I should have known. I should have seen it. Chris Keller's #1 priority has always been Chris Keller. He just wants his five minutes of fame. I'm pretty sure he's the one who leaked the story to the press. I mean, who else could it have been?"

She looked in his eyes, her makeup running down her face. He squeezed her hand, but was still unable to say anything.

"Nathan, I'm so sorry," Haley choked, "I wanted to tell you, but I didn't want you to think that…I was that girl. The girl who had sex on a tour bus and would give it up to anyone. That's not who I am. I wanted to be someone, someone important, that everyone knew. It was stupid, and I didn't want to lie to you. I was embarrassed and ashamed to have to admit that Chr..he was Jamie's father, if you could even say that. More like a sperm donor, but…"

"Hales, you're rambling," Nathan interrupted, a small smirk on his face, knowing that it would make her smile, and it did.

"I completely understand if you hate me, if you're mad at me for lying to you," Haley replied, the smile leaving her face almost immediately, as she looked down into her lap, her grip on Nathan's hand loosening.

* * *

"Haley, look at me," Nathan said, his fingers lifting her chin up to meet his gaze, "I don't hate you. I could never hate you. Look, Chris Keller is an ass. And he doesn't deserve to be in your life, or Jamie's for that matter. Let's just promise to be honest with each other from now on, alright?"

Haley looked into his blue eyes, her small smile creeping back into appearance as she sighed, "Thank you for being such an amazing guy."

She leaned forward and pressed her lips against his, a sweet kiss, full of hope and promise. Yet soon, it turned into more, as the two were soon engaged in a heated makeout session. Nathan was hovering on top of Haley, his lips trailing from her lips, down her neck, and his hands exploring her body, finding the small strip of skin exposed from her t-shirt sliding up. Things were starting to get pretty hot and heavy, when Haley heard Jamie yelling for her.

The young boy's cries brought both of them back to reality, as Haley was out of breath, sitting up from her previously laid-back position on the couch. Nathan looked slightly disappointed, but she placed a quick peck on his cheek before hurrying to Jamie's room.

Though they had been together for months now, they still hadn't had sex. Haley was clear about physical boundaries. She loved Nathan. She knew she did, and she knew that he loved her too. But she just couldn't allow herself to go all the way. Something was holding her back. Thankfully, Nathan was being patient with her, at least for now anyway.

* * *

"Mama, I had a bad dream," Jamie whispered, his bottom lip quivering as he sat up in his bed.

"Oh baby I'm sorry," Haley replied, sitting next to him, pulling him close to her, "Do you want me to stay until you fall back to sleep?"

"Could you sing me a song?" Jamie asked, "The heart song?"

Jamie's current favorite movie was Tarzan, and he'd insisted that Haley learn how to play "You'll Be in My Heart" on her guitar.

"It's late Jimmy-Jam," said Haley, her mom look beginning to form, "You need to get some sleep."

"Just one song, please Mama?" Jamie begged, sticking his bottom lip out in full puppy-dog form.

Haley sighed, giving in as she crossed the hall to get her guitar, her eyes catching Nathan's as he sat on the couch still in the hall. It was a small house, and you could see just about everything from the hallway.

* * *

She sat on the edge of Jamie's bed, strumming her guitar, singing about how she would keep her son safe, now and forevermore, meaning every word she sang. She didn't notice that Nathan had joined them, leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed as he listened to her sing. As she did, Jamie laid back on his pillow, his eyes fluttering shut as she reached the end of the song.

Nathan slipped his arm around her waist as they walked back out to the living room, placing a kiss to the top of her head.

"I should get going," Nathan said, "The team has an early practice tomorrow, and I have to get in a workout myself."

"Nathan, about before," Haley began, talking about their couch endeavors, "I'm sorry, It's just…"

"Hales, I told you, it's okay," Nathan smiled, "It's not about sex with me okay? When you're ready, I'll be too."

Haley wrapped her arms around his neck, standing on her tiptoes as she pulled him into an embrace, "Thank you."

* * *

The next day, Haley had gone to TRIC, after receiving a frantic call from Peyton. Having to walk past a few photographers with flashing cameras as she walked in, she saw Peyton through the crack in the sliding doorway of the back area of TRIC. It was a big space, but it wasn't being used for anything.

"P. Sawyer, what are you doing back here?" Haley asked, coughing from all the dust in the air, surprised by what she saw in the previously empty space.

There was a pool table, and a desk, and further off, she could see what looked like a recording studio built in the back. A piano lay in the center of the room.

"Well, Karen's agreed to lease me this space, to open my own music label," Peyton smiled, "Say hello to Red Bedroom Records."

Haley smiled at the reminiscence of Peyton's bedroom, where so much had happened in high school and so many memories had been made in those four red walls.

"That's great Peyton, congratulations," she replied, hugging her friend.

"And, I'm about to sign my first artist!" Peyton exclaimed, her smile not going away.

"Awesome! Who is it?" Haley questioned, although confused by the strange smile on Peyton's face, then she realized what she was saying, but not really saying, "Woah, Peyton, I can't. No way."

"Come on Haley," Peyton whined, "You owe me. Remember that time, when Jamie was puking buckets, and you had to go work a double at the café. Who cleaned up that vomit, huh? Who smelled like little boy puke for days? This is the least you could do for me."

Haley rolled her eyes, sighing, "Peyton, I just have so much going on right now. With Jamie, and the café, and Nathan."

"I know for a fact that with Deb at the café now, and Karen back, they can manage to spare you for a few hours a day. And Nathan and Jamie want you to be happy. This has been your dream ever since I've known you, Haley James. You can do this."

* * *

Meanwhile, Nathan was at the youth center, in the gymnasium, with Millie and Brooke, baby Liam strapped to her chest in a carrier. Brooke had insisted that she help with the design for the gala, despite being exhausted from having a newborn.

"Now, the stage will be set up in the front, the dance floor in the middle, with tables surrounding it," Brooke motioned with one hand, the other placing a pacifier back in Liam's tiny mouth, "Nathan, are you ever going to tell us who this surprise musical guest is? I need to know so I can get the design for the stage just right."

"I'm sorry Brooke," Nathan smirked, "But I can't tell you. I'm sure whatever you decide will be fine."

Nathan did not have an eye for design, obviously, and was more than happy to give that duty to Brooke and Millie. He had invited some of his teammates, his coach, the team owner, and some other big-wigs that he knew would help bring in donations for the youth center. He wanted this night to be perfect.

"Alright everyone," Brooke called, getting the crew together, "We've got one week and a lot to do. Let's get it done!"

* * *

 _A few days later…_

"Oh my gosh!" Haley sighed, her head in her hands. She had been so busy the past few days, signing paperwork, officially joining Peyton's label, in addition to running the café and taking care of Jamie, that she'd completely forgotten that he started kindergarten in a few days. She had registered him for school months ago, but he had grown this summer, and he needed new clothes.

"Haley James, what's happening girl?" Skills asked, as he and Nathan took a seat at the counter next to Jamie, who was coloring a picture.

"Jamie's growing up!" she exclaimed, "He starts school in two days and I haven't had time to take him shopping. And to top it all off, my car broke down, again. Piece of crap."

"You get off at 4 right?" Nathan asked, as she nodded, "I'm sure the store will still be there then. And can't Keith fix your car?"

"I have a meeting with Peyton at Red Bedroom today, and I'll be there all day tomorrow too. She wants me to start recording some of my songs," Haley explained, "I've postponed it three times already, and if I do it again, I'm afraid she'll hunt me down. And Keith, bless his heart, has done all he can for my junk on wheels. Ugh, what am I going to do?"

* * *

Skills and Nathan turned and looked at each other, shrugging. The two had become good friends since Nathan had come to town and started helping with the Ravens.

"We could take him shopping, Hales," Nathan suggested, not fully realizing what this would entail.

"Yeah, come on, we'll make him look fly as hel…hello Dolly," Skills quickly caught himself before cursing in front of small ears, which were really big ears that heard and repeated EVERYTHING.

"Nathan, Antwon, that's really sweet of you, but I know you're busy with team and I don't want to bother you with this," Haley shook her head.

"Look, Hales, we have practice in a half hour," Nathan explained, "Jamie can come with us, and we'll take him shopping after. It'll be fun."

"Yeah mama, please, can I?" Jamie piped up, the puppy dog look returning to his face.

She sighed, looking at her son before turning back to the two grown men.

"If he comes back looking like P-Diddy, you're both dead," Haley said seriously, before a small smile crept onto her lips.

* * *

As Skills and Jamie began to walk outside, Haley dug around in her purse, pulling out a crumpled fifty dollar bill.

"Do the best you can, okay?" she said, handing Nathan the limp, sad-looking money, "It's not a lot, but since my car decided to go kapoots on me again, we can't do anything crazy. If you need help, ask the salespeople. And whatever you do, don't let Antwon pick anything out, okay?"

Nathan smiled, before kissing Haley's forehead and squeezing her hand before he followed Skills and Jamie out the door.

* * *

Haley walked into her house after a long, exhausting day. The café had been busy, and then she'd spent the rest of her night recording with Peyton. She'd been happy with Haley's writing, pleased with her recent burst of inspiration for songwriting (Nathan, the press, the Chris story getting out).

She was surprised to see Jamie, asleep on Nathan's lap on the couch.

"He wanted to wait up for you, to show you his new stuff," Nathan whispered, "But the little guy tuckered out about twenty minutes ago."

Haley pressed a kiss to the small boy's temple, before Nathan carried him into his room.

"Should I be scared?" Haley asked, as Nathan grabbed the bags of their purchases from the kitchen.

Her eyes widened at the sight of so many bags. There was NO WAY he could have gotten that much for the fifty dollars she'd given him.

"Before you say anything, I never got to give Jamie a birthday present, so I decided this was a good time to cash that in," Nathan explained, gesturing to the bags before pulling that crumpled bill back out of his pocket, handing it to her, "Take it. Seriously, Hales, kids' clothes are expensive, but it's not like we can have him going to school naked. I don't think the principal would like that very much."

She laughed as Nathan showed her everything they had gotten. She wasn't surprised to see that many of the shirts had something to do with basketball. A few plain shirts were mixed in, jeans, shorts, and the final item Nathan pulled out of the bag was a fake leather jacket.

"I know you said not to let Skills pick anything out, but come on Hales," Nathan smiled, "You gotta admit, this is pretty awesome."

"You're spared, don't worry," Haley laughed, before the smile disappeared from her face.

* * *

"You've been acting kind of weird all day, Hales," Nathan stated, "What's going on?"

She sighed, "The gala is in a few days. You leave to go back to Charlotte in two weeks. And we haven't exactly talked about what's going to happen when you do."

She was right, Nathan thought. His time in Tree Hill was coming to an end, quickly. The Bobcats had won their first preseason game last week, and their next one was tomorrow night. Just like that, Nathan's suspension would be over, and he'd be expected back in Charlotte, ready to suit up and play again.

However, he found himself extremely hesitant to leave, not only Haley and Jamie, but all of the friends that he had made here as well, not to mention his mom. They'd just started rebuilding their trust and relationship, and now he was going to leave. Sure Charlotte was only a couple hours away, give or take, but it wouldn't be the same.

"I love you, Haley James," Nathan said, intertwining their hands, "And I don't want to leave. But you know that I have to. I want you and Jamie to come to the home games, though, if you can. You can bring Lucas and Brooke, and maybe my mom if she'd want to come. And I'll be back, when I can, but I can't make any promises. We're just going to have to learn to love phone calls and video chats, that's all."

The two cuddled up on the couch, unaware of everything that was going on around them.

* * *

 **Charlotte, NC**

"As far as I can tell, sir, they're still together," the private investigator reported to Dan, who was fuming.

He'd thought that releasing the story about Haley and Chris would convince Nathan that she wasn't worth his time, but his son, ever the forgiver, had done exactly the opposite. He sighed, dismissing the P.I. as he tried to figure out what to do next.

He left the office and went to the coffee shop, sitting down after he received his order. His attention was suddenly grabbed by the television.

"Reporting live from Tree Hill, North Carolina, I'm Josie Kent. In just a few days, Nathan Scott will hold a benefit gala for the Tree Hill Community Youth Center. Scott has been volunteering at the center all summer, and hopes to raise $250,000 at the event."

Dan Scott smiled, as he sipped his coffee, and called his assistant.

"Cancel all my meetings for the next few days," he said, "It's time I go see my son."

* * *

 **SOOO sorry for the length between updates! I went on vacation, and then had a SERIOUS case of writer's block. Who knew that listening to 90's boybands would be what got me writing again? (NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys to be exact!)**

 **HUGE thanks to NALEYAAF23 and NALEY23alwaysforever for helping me out! I did make a few changes to the plot, including Jamie's name and the story of how he came to be. Hope you all enjoy it!**

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed the tenth chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Day of the Benefit Gala for the Youth Center**

The day had finally arrived. Everyone was running around, trying to get everything done and ready for that evening.

Haley, herself, was exhausted, simply from being in the studio for the past few days with Peyton. Things were progressing rather quickly, something Peyton was very happy to see. Haley hadn't realized how much she missed singing her own songs. Sure, singing at TRIC one night a week was great, but this could be her career, if she played her cards right.

* * *

Nathan still had not revealed who the musical guest would be that night, but Haley was excited regardless, because it was another night she would get to spend with her boyfriend. The days were numbered now, Nathan having to leave for Charlotte in approximately 11 days. Since their talk a few nights prior, neither of them had brought up the fact that he was leaving, deciding to live in the moment instead.

"Brooke, this is…wow," Haley stated, looking at herself in the mirror as she admired the dress Brooke had made for her to wear to the gala.

"Nathan won't know what hit him," Brooke smiled devilishly.

The dress was short, tight, and black, with a black lace overlay. It was definitely not something Haley would normally wear, but she didn't have a choice. She had nothing fancy enough in her closet, and didn't exactly have the money to go out and buy a new dress, with her car breaking down again days before.

Brooke had always had a knack for designing clothes, ever since high school. And since tonight was such a special occasion, she'd insisted on creating a "Brooke Davis Original" for Haley to wear.

* * *

Haley was brought out of her thoughts by her phone going off, signaling a text message. It was from Nathan.

 _ **Finalizing things at the center. Your carriage will arrive at 6. I love you!**_

She smiled, not realizing that she was blushing as well.

"Lover boy I assume?" Brooke asked, nodding towards Haley's phone.

"Yeah, he was just telling me when he was going to pick me up," Haley replied, before sending a quick response to Nathan.

 _ **I anxiously await your arrival, Prince Charming. I love you too!**_

"You two are seriously gag-worthy," Brooke sighed, as she picked up baby Liam from his swing, "I still can't believe you guys haven't done it yet."

"Brooke!" Haley exclaimed, gesturing towards the small baby in her best friend's arms.

"What? It's not like he understands anything we're saying," Brooke defended, "Plus, he's going to figure out someday that that's how he was created. Haley, you've dropped the L bomb already and you two can hardly keep your hands off each other. What's with the closed legs?"

Haley sighed, "Brooke, you know that I haven't been with anyone since Chris. It's been almost five years. I guess I'm just….scared."

"Have you told him about the…?" Brooke began, before Haley quickly cut her off.

"No, I haven't, and I'd like to keep it that way for now Brooke," Haley interjected, slipping on a pair of black heels.

"I should have made a backless dress," Brooke suggested, "Then you wouldn't have had to tell him about your little drunken love tattoo."

"Brooke, it's not a big deal, alright?" Haley winced, the tattoo on her lower back still a little painful, remembering the night she'd gotten the tattoo.

* * *

 _Brooke had been cleared by the doctor to drink alcohol, so, naturally, Peyton and Haley took her out for a girls' night. Regrettably, they all got hammered, and decided that they should all go get tattoos together. When they got to the parlor, however, Brooke and Peyton chickened out. Haley, however, ever the confident drunk, decided to get Nathan's jersey number tattooed on her lower back: 23._

 _Haley woke up at home the next morning, not fully remembering the night before, just feeling shooting pain in her lower back. She saw the bandage in the mirror, and everything came flooding back to her memory._

* * *

"Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?" Nathan asked, as he and Haley walked into the youth center, fingers laced together.

"Only about five times, but I haven't gotten tired of hearing it," Haley smiled, placing a quick peck to his cheek.

The space was decorated beautifully, and there were already quite a few people seated at their tables, enjoying drinks and mingling.

Nathan led Haley to their table, where Lucas, Brooke, Peyton, and Jake sat.

"And the golden couple finally arrives," Peyton smiled, taking a sip of her wine.

"Haha very funny," Haley replied, taking a seat, as Nathan stayed standing, looking nervous.

"Babe, what's wrong?" she questioned, looking at him.

"Players from my team are supposed to be here, and the team owner and my coach," Nathan answered, "I just want everything to be perfect."

"It will be," Haley smiled, her hand stroking his arm, "Now sit down and have a drink before you give yourself a hernia."

* * *

After relaxing and having a few drinks, Nathan saw some of his teammates and his coach walk in the door. He waved them over, standing, as Haley saw his hand shake with nerves. The last time he'd seen them, was right after his bar fight. She knew that he was worried about seeing them again. She slipped her hand into his, the shaking stopping almost immediately.

"Nathan Scott, you look good," his coach said, shaking his hand.

"Thanks Coach," Nathan smiled, "Guys, this is Haley, my girlfriend. Haley, this is my coach, Bobby Irons, and my teammates, Nino, Damien, and Owen."

Everyone exchanged their hellos and how-do-you-do's before Bobby spoke up.

"You know, Haley, I thought you looked familiar," he said, "About five years ago, I took my daughter to your concert in Seattle. She loved your music. Heck, when she found out I was going to see you tonight, she asked me to ask if you were working on anything new."

Haley took a deep breath, "Yeah, that was a long time ago, but you can tell your daughter that I actually just signed with a record label and I'm working on an album."

"She'll be pleased as a peach to hear that," Bobby smiled, "Nathan, you seem to have found your way here in this small town."

"Yeah, I guess I have," Nathan smiled, looking at Haley and squeezing her hand.

* * *

As Haley and Nathan continued to talk to his coach and teammates, Millie tapped Nathan on the shoulder, whispering something in his ear.

"I hate to cut this reunion short guys, but the music is about to start and I have to go make sure things are okay backstage," Nathan sighed, shaking hands with all the guys before taking Haley's hand, leading her out into the hallway behind where the stage was set up.

"Nathan, where are we going?" Haley laughed, her smile turning into a surprised expression when she saw who was sitting in the room that they'd gone into. Gavin DeGraw.

She hadn't seen him in almost six years. She'd followed his music, though, and known that he'd gotten really popular. She was happy for him. He'd always been nice and supportive to her on the tour.

"Haley James," Gavin said, hugging the still-shocked woman, "It's been too long."

"Gavin, what are you doing here?" Haley asked, looking between Gavin and Nathan.

"Well, Nathan called and asked if I could help him out," Gavin explained, "And I knew that I'd get to see you again, convince you to get back into music?"

* * *

"I kind of already have," Haley smiled nervously, "My friend Peyton started this label and I've been recording like a mad woman the past few weeks."

"That's great Haley, really" Gavin insisted, "It was always a shame that you left the tour, but I'm glad you're getting back into music."

The three talked for a minute or two more, before Gavin began clearing his throat and coughing.

As he took a sip of water, Haley asked if he was alright.

"My throat has just been bugging me the last few days. I don't know what's going on," he said, his voice sounding a little hoarse, "I don't want to keep everyone waiting out there, but, maybe, Haley, you could open for me? Give my throat some time to chill?"

"Gavin, I can't," Haley stammered.

"Just one song, Haley, please?" Gavin pleaded, coughing.

Haley sighed, looking at Nathan, who was smiling.

* * *

As Nathan walked out on the stage, everyone clapped.

"Thank you all for coming out tonight," Nathan said, "Volunteering at this center has meant a lot to me over the past few months. The kids are truly incredible and they deserve the best. I hope we can give them that tonight. Now, we have for your musical entertainment tonight, two talented artists that I'm sure you guys are going to love. First up, please welcome to the stage, my beautiful girlfriend, Miss Haley James!"

Haley walked out on stage, waving as the audience clapped for her.

"Thank you guys so much," she smiled, "I wasn't expecting to perform tonight, but it couldn't be for a better cause. I came here when I was a kid with my best friend Lucas, and now, my son comes here. It's a special place, and I hope you all can see that and feel that. Anyway, this is a song that I just finished writing and recording. It means a lot, so I hope you enjoy."

* * *

The band began to play her song, "Halo," which was about people having high expectations of Haley, and how she felt like she couldn't make any mistakes, because everyone thought she was this "perfect" person. Haley had written the song because she wanted people to see her and love her, even for the mistakes that she made. No one's perfect, and that's what she wrote this song about.

As her song came to a close, she immediately felt this rush, a rush she always got when she performed. She loved this feeling, never wanting it to go away.

"You guys are awesome, thank you so much," Haley sighed, "And now, without further ado, please welcome, Gavin DeGraw!"

Haley walked off stage, ready to hand the mic off to Gavin, who miraculously looked 100% better now. Seeing the look on his face, she asked, "How's the throat?"

"You did great, Haley," Gavin smiled, winking at her, before heading onto the stage, as Haley went back to the table where Nathan and Co. sat waiting for her.

* * *

"Hello Tree Hill!" Gavin said, as the crowd applauded, "It really is great to be here. Before I say anything else, can we just get one bigger round of applause for Miss Haley James! Wasn't she incredible? She has a great future ahead of her in music. That I know for a fact!"

The crowd cheered loudly, the loudest cheers coming from the table where Nathan, Haley, and the gang sat.

"I'm honored to be here, to help raise money for such a great cause," Gavin continued, "I grew up in New York, and spent a lot of time in a place like this there. The kids that come here, they are our future, so we've gotta do right by them. Now, I have a new song, which I'd like to share with you all. It's called, She Sets the City on Fire. I hope you like it."

* * *

Haley reached for Nathan's hand as Gavin began to sing and the band began to play. People were heading onto the dance floor and she wanted to join them.

"Hales, I don't dance," Nathan nervously laughed.

"You made me sing, I'm making you dance," Haley gave him a knowing look. He'd been busted. Nathan had talked to Gavin before the show, knowing that Haley wouldn't just perform at the gala if he'd asked her to.

They made it out onto the dance floor, their friends close behind them as Nathan did his best to please his girlfriend, attempting to shuffle to the music, Haley laughing at him the whole time.

At one point, Nathan wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer. She'd winced, as he touched her lower back where the tattoo of his jersey number still pained her, and he'd noticed her facial expression change.

"You okay?" he asked, concern in his voice.

She desperately looked to Brooke, but she was happily dancing the night away with Lucas. Sighing, she forced a small smile, "Yeah, my back's just been bothering me a little. I think I'm going to head to the ladies' room. I'll be right back."

* * *

She walked away, seeing that Nathan was still concerned as she walked out into the hallway. She took a deep breath, sighing as she hesitantly touched the spot where the bandage lay beneath her dress. She jumped when she heard a voice. She thought she'd been alone in the hall.

"That song was great," the man said, semi-concealed in the shadows of the dimly-lit hall, "You're very talented."

"Thank you," she replied, squinting to see who it was.

The man walked towards her then, but she didn't recognize him. He was tall, older, with dark hair and dark eyes.

"Mr. DeGraw was right. You'll have a great future," the man smiled, "But maybe not with Nathan Scott. I mean, what do you see in that guy anyway? You could do so much better. Maybe you should just quit now, while you're still ahead."

Haley was nervous now, wanting to get back to the party, "I should go. Thank you, for the compliment earlier. Have a nice night."

She moved to head back through the doorway, but the man suddenly blocked it with his large stature.

"That wasn't a suggestion, sweetheart," he said, grabbing her arm, "You need to leave Nathan alone or you'll be sorry."

* * *

Haley winced in pain again, but this time, from his tight grip on her arm. Just as she was about to reply, another voice joined them in the hall.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Lucas asked, as he saw the man's grip on Haley's arm, "I don't believe you were invited Dan."

Dan. Dan Scott. Nathan's father. It all hit Haley like a ton of bricks. The controlling, selfish, son of a bitch she'd heard so little about, yet she felt like she already knew him from what Nathan and Deb had said.

Dan released his grip on Haley's arm, red impressions of his hand now visible, "I was just telling Haley here how great her performance was. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to see my son."

Lucas blocked the door, though his height was the same as Dan's, his muscular build was not, "You don't have a son in there Dan, and you know it. I think you should leave, now."

"Fine," Dan said, backing up with his hands up in defeat, "You know, you always were a lover, not a fighter, huh Lucas? Just like your old man. Always quick to stand up for the helpless. Could get you into trouble one day."

"Is that a threat?" Lucas asked, anger in his tone of voice now.

"No, just a warning," Dan replied, before smiling at the two of them, "Have a nice night."

* * *

"Hales, are you all right?" Lucas asked, looking at her arm.

"Luke, I'm fine really," Haley responded, "He just scared me, that's all."

"I was coming out to call the sitter, to check on Liam," Lucas explained his arrival, "I've got to go tell Nathan about this."

"Don't Lucas, please," Haley pleaded, "He wants this night to be perfect. Can we please just wait until later?"

"Haley, he has to know that Dan's in town, that he was here, that he threatened you, and me," Lucas sternly said.

"He left, Luke," Haley insisted, "Let's just go back to the party, and we can tell Nathan when it's over."

Lucas relented, following Haley back to the event.

* * *

"Hey, where'd my dance partner disappear to?" Nathan asked, his hand reaching for hers.

As she twined her fingers with his, she didn't even think about Dan's handprint, showing up red on her arm. It was fading quickly, so it no longer looked like someone had grabbed her, but it was still noticeable.

"What happened?" Nathan asked, tracing a finger lightly over the mark.

"I…shut my arm in the bathroom door," Haley shook her head, "Silly me. I was in a hurry to get back to you."

Haley felt guilty, for not telling Nathan about the tattoo or about Dan showing up and threatening her, especially after they'd promised that they'd be honest with each other. But, finding out about the tattoo might freak him out, and finding out about Dan would set him off, big time.

* * *

"Now I think we'll slow things down a little bit," Gavin said as he sat behind the keyboard, plinking away at the keys, playing his song "More Than Anyone."

"Have I told you lately how much I love you?" Haley asked, her arms draped around Nathan's neck, toying with the hair at the nape of his neck.

"Yeah, but I don't get tired of hearing it," Nathan smiled, placing a kiss to her forehead, "I love you too Haley James, always, and forever."

"Now that, was really cheesy," Haley laughed, "But I like the sound of it. Always and forever."

Her head leaned against his chest, not wanting this seemingly perfect moment to end.

* * *

The gala was now over, having been hugely successful, as donation checks had come in by the dozens. The final count was still being totaled, but Haley was sure they'd surpassed the $250,000 goal. She and Nathan were sitting at their table, the only ones left in the place, sipping on some wine as they waited for Millie and the volunteers to total the checks.

"Jamie's pretty excited about starting school tomorrow," Haley smiled, looking at Nathan, "He asked me if you would come with us when we dropped him off."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world," Nathan replied, his fingers lacing with Haley's, "I love you, Hales, and I love Jamie too. This has been the perfect summer. Nothing could change how happy I am right now, in this moment."

* * *

Just as Nathan said this, he heard footsteps. Thinking it was Millie, he turned, but instead, to his horror, he saw his father in a tuxedo, walking towards him. Nathan quickly stood, standing in front of Haley as to shield her.

"Dan, you need to leave," Nathan said sternly, not messing around.

"Son, is that any way to talk to your father?" Dan questioned, smiling all the while, "Hello Haley."

"Don't talk to her," Nathan spit, "Now, I asked you nicely. Get. The. Hell. Out. Of. Here."

"There's that Nathan Scott anger," Dan replied, chuckling, "I knew that one summer fling with a charity case couldn't take that out of you. You got that from me, you know. Your fighting spirit."

"The only thing I got from you was a messed up childhood, Dan. Get your facts straight," Nathan mustered with all the strength he could, trying to keep his cool with Haley sitting right behind him.

"Actually, I believe that was your drug addict of a mother, but I heard you forgave her," Dan continued, "Now, that sounds more like something Lucas would do, don't you think? You really think she's changed? You don't think she's come back to you now, when you're rich and famous? Has she asked you for money yet?"

"My relationship with my mother is none of your damn business," Nathan spewed, "Now leave, before I call the cops."

"And really, Nathan," Dan just kept going, "Don't you think you can do better than a poor wannabe singer/single mom? What, are you going to be her kid's new daddy or something? Because once he calls you that, you won't be able to leave."

That set Nathan off, as he lunged towards Dan and punched him in the jaw, as Haley screamed, "Nathan!"

Dan stumbled backwards, his hand reaching up to touch the blood that was now trickling down his chin, "Good shot son. I knew you hadn't learned to control that anger. The fire's still there."

"You need to shut the hell up, about Haley and Jamie and everything, you hear me?" Nathan was boiling by now.

"Alright son, you win," Dan replied, wiping the blood from his busted-open lip, beginning to walk away, before turning back around, "But before I go, Haley, great tattoo you got the other night. This one can't hold her liquor, Nate. Be careful."

* * *

"Nathan, I'm sorry," Haley shook her head, "I should've told you that Dan was here when I found out."

"You knew he was here, and you didn't tell me?" Nathan questioned defensively, still fuming.

"I didn't know who he was, at first, until he was threatening me and Lucas showed up and got him to leave, or so I thought," Haley related, "He told me that I should stay away from you."

Nathan shook his head, "Unbelievable. He's tried to control every aspect of my entire life, Haley, and as you can tell, nothing is off limits. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have hit him. He just knows how to get me going, how to push my buttons."

Haley sighed, reaching for his hand, which she knew was going to need ice, "I know, it's just…seeing you that angry, Nathan. It scared me. Sometimes, it feels like you haven't let me in all the way or something. I mean, you just punched your father in the face.

"I'll let you in if that's what it takes. It's just…sometimes I'm afraid that if I do, you'll see the real me. The guy I was before you. And I'm not proud of that person, okay; the one that I used to be. But if I have to be that guy to keep you and Jamie safe, than that's who I'm going to be. Look, if you want me to apologize for defending you, or for fighting back when somebody hurts you, then I can't do that – I won't do that, okay, because the truth is: that's a guy that I'll never be," Nathan declared, "A guy that just stands by and watches while the world hurts you. Can you understand that?"

"Thank you, for defending me Nathan," Haley smiled, "But I need to know that you realize that not every problem can be solved with your fist. Okay?"

"I think I can work on that," Nathan smiled, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as they walked out to leave, "What was Dan talking about when he said you got a tattoo?"

"It's a long story," Haley quickly replied.

* * *

 **So, everyone, Dan is in town! Will there be more confrontations, or will he really stay away?**

 **Thanks for the reviews! :)**

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed the eleventh chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	12. Chapter 12

"I can't believe my baby is starting kindergarten today," Haley choked back tears, as Nathan pulled his car into the Tree Hill Elementary School parking lot.

"Mama, I'm not a baby," Jamie insisted, grabbing his basketball backpack, which was almost as big as he was, as he hopped out of the car. He was wearing his autographed Nathan Scott Bobcats jersey, which was a little too big for his small frame. Haley had tried to get him to wear something else, but had ultimately had to pick her battles, and this wasn't one she wanted to start.

* * *

As they walked towards the school, Jamie was walking between Haley and Nathan, holding each of their hands. They did their best to shield him from the flashes of the few photographers' cameras who were standing across the street from the school. There were still a few leftover vultures in town from the gala yesterday.

Jamie's teacher, Miss Lauren, was standing outside with a group of kids, waiting for the rest of the class to get there. She saw Jamie and smiled, waving him over.

Haley bent down to Jamie, tears still in her eyes, "Alright Jimmy Jam, be good today. Make sure to eat the carrots in your lunch and…"

As Haley was bent down, her shirt creeped up in the back, allowing Nathan to see a very familiar number taking up residence there. His eyes widened in shock.

"Mama, can I go now?" Jamie asked impatiently, looking over to where Andre and Chuck were waiting with Miss Lauren.

"Of course baby," Haley forced a smile, "I love you."

"I love you too Mama," Jamie said, hugging her, before turning to Nathan, "Bye Nathan."

The two exchanged a fist bump, which had become their thing, before Jamie ran off.

Haley stood up, wiping the tears from her eyes, before wrapping her arms around Nathan as they began to walk back to the parking lot, Nathan not saying a word.

* * *

Arriving at Nathan's beach house, Nathan asked Haley, "You hungry?"

"Oh, I'm hungry for you," Haley smiled, "I have a few hours before I have to head into the café, and I could think of a few things that could occupy my time."

Her smile turned devilish as she reached to wrap her arms around Nathan's neck.

Nathan ducked out of her embrace as he said, "No I'm serious. We could heat something up, or go out for breakfast, if you want to."

Haley's face took on a concerned look, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I'm just hungry," Nathan replied matter-of-factly.

Haley took a step closer to him, a small smile appearing, "I don't buy it. Talk to me."

"What? I just don't feel like making out, that's all," Nathan shrugged, hardly able to look her in the eye.

"You realize that you, Nathan Scott, just said that right?" Haley questioned, a chuckle in her voice, "Since when?"

Nathan sighed, "Since you got my jersey number tattooed on your ass."

Haley's face fell, "Oh," she quietly said, turning away from him for a moment before turning back, "Above my ass actually. When did you see that?"

"When you were talking to Jamie this morning," Nathan answered, now looking at her.

* * *

 _ **Flashback**_

 _Haley sat at the counter in the café, toying with the tea bag in her cup, as Peyton opened the door, sending the bells jingling. The closed sign was up in the window, had been for a few hours, but Haley remained seated in the café._

" _What's going on Hales?" Peyton asked, "Still recovering from our wild night?"_

 _Haley smiled, "Most of that I can't remember. Which is probably a good thing."_

" _We were totally plastered," Peyton laughed, "What about the tattoo thing? Do you regret it? I mean, it is a little crazy."_

" _Ugh, what am I going to do Peyton?" Haley sighed, "I hate being away from him. I think about him constantly. You know, we had a crazy busy lunch rush today, and I just completely zoned out on him. Maybe we aren't going to be together for the rest of our lives, but right now, I'm in love, real love, for the first time, and twenty years from now, if I look at this tattoo and it reminds me of how I feel right now, I think I'd be okay with that."_

" _You're in love Haley James," Peyton smiled, "And I'm happy for you. Both of you."_

* * *

Haley paused for a moment before speaking, "Does that bother you?"

Nathan's anger couldn't be held back any longer.

"I'm just confused as hell," he snapped, "I mean, you'll go and do something that permanent, but you won't have sex with me?"

Haley narrowed her eyes, "You can get a tattoo removed Nathan. Sex is a really big deal for me."

"I get that," Nathan uttered, "That's why I haven't been pressuring you into it."

"Oh, the way you're not pressuring me right now?" Haley retorted, her arms crossed in front of her chest.

Nathan sighed, still upset, "I'm going to go heat up some food."

He turned and walked into the kitchen, expecting her to follow him, continuing the argument or just forgiving him right away.

"Yeah, well, good luck with that," Haley huffed, walking towards the door.

"Haley, where are you going?" Nathan yelled, as he ran to the door, seeing her hurrying down the stairs.

"Oh right, I don't want you to be confused," Haley snapped, turning to look up at him, "I'm walking home. Don't follow me."

* * *

It had been three days since Nathan and Haley's fight. He'd called her about fifty times, left dozens of voicemails and texts. He'd even stopped by the café, but the icy glare he'd gotten from her through the window had him backing away slowly, not wanting to make things any worse than they already were.

Why had he said that? Nathan asked himself. He loved her. It wasn't so much about the sex, even though he'd made it out to be that way. He realized that when he saw his number inked forever on her skin, it made things feel permanent, like that ink, and that scared him a little. His time in Tree Hill was rapidly expiring, and the two of them had barely talked about what was going to happen when he left. Regardless, he loved her, and he had to make things right.

* * *

Three days. That's how long it had been since Haley had seen Nathan. Since he'd seen her tattoo and freaked out. She hadn't thought it was that big of a deal. They were in love, and people get tattoos for the people that they love. Maybe she should have done it when she was sober, and could think straight, but she honestly didn't regret it.

She had been so tempted to pick up the phone when he called or texted, to answer. But she'd stopped herself. She needed time. She thought that he understood why she didn't want to have sex right away. She had told him that Chris was her first time, her only time. She'd promised herself that the next time she slept with someone, it would be when she was in love, maybe even with her husband.

Jamie had been begging to see Nathan the past few days, but Haley made excuse after excuse about why he couldn't come over, or why they couldn't go to his house. The two of them had grown extremely close over the past months. The three of them had basically been inseparable since Nathan and Haley had gotten together. And now, things were changing. Nathan was leaving in a week, back to Charlotte and his NBA celebrity lifestyle. How was Haley, a single mom who worked in a café, supposed to compete with that?

* * *

The rain poured down hard as Peyton gave Haley a ride home from the café. Her car was still broken down, and Keith wasn't so sure he'd be able to fix it this time. As she pulled up in front of Haley's house, they both noticed Nathan sitting on the front steps, soaking wet.

"Are you going to be okay?" Peyton asked, looking at Haley, who suddenly looked nervous.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she quickly answered, "Thanks for the ride Peyton."

"I'll pick up Jamie after school," Peyton said, "Jake owes him ice cream. I told him to stop betting over NBA Live, but it's his fault for losing to a five year old."

* * *

Haley ran out of the car, into the rain, as Nathan stood to join her, "Nathan, what are you doing?" she asked.

"I just went for a run to clear my head," he replied, "I guess this is where I ended up."

Haley shook her head, moving to go around him into the house, before he stepped into her path.

"Look, Haley, I'm sorry about before," he said, trying to get her to look at him, but her eyes remained fixed on the ground, "What I said, it was wrong. I don't know what I was thinking. And it's not about the sex, okay? I guess when I saw the tattoo, it made me realize that this, our relationship, is like the ink. It could be permanent, and I guess that scared me a little."

"Is that it?" Haley questioned, finally looking into his eyes.

"You know, my pride says yeah, that's it. Just walk away and let Haley deal with the fact that she's clearly threatened by a sexual relationship," Nathan stated, "But my heart says, just forget about your pride, you idiot. You love this girl. And even if you're going to catch pneumonia, your ass is going to stand out here, in the rain, until you convince her to forgive you. So, come on Hales, just, meet me halfway here?"

"Why should I?" Haley quickly replied, still unable to look away from his icy blue eyes.

"Because I'm sorry," Nathan paused, "Because I love you. And because, you're looking really hot standing out here in the rain, and I'm thinking, I have to kiss you."

Haley ran her hands through her wet hair, sighing, "Well, if you have to."

They both smiled as Haley stood on her tiptoes, capturing his lips with hers. His hand cradled her face, his thumb stroking her cheek.

* * *

The two laughed as they ran into the house, soaking wet, dripping water everywhere.

"Come on!" Haley smiled, running into her room, grabbing some towels from her bathroom.

Nathan dried his arms and legs before taking a seat on the edge of her bed, peeling off his wet t-shirt. Haley was trying to dry her hair, before she stopped, as the sight of Nathan's chiseled abs made her eyes glint. She smiled, throwing the towel onto the floor, as she looked into his eyes, that glint still in her own.

"What?" Nathan asked, as he sat on the edge of his girlfriend's bed, trying to figure out how he had managed to get this beautiful girl to fall in love with him.

Haley peeled off her wet shirt, throwing it off to the side, leaving her in her bra and jeans, standing before him.

"Haley," Nathan began, shaking his head. He didn't want the conversation they'd just had to make her think they had to have sex now.

"No, it's okay," she smiled, kissing him as they both fell back onto the bed, her on top of him.

* * *

A few minutes later, the room was getting pretty steamy, as the two explored each other's bodies, not yet fully unclothed.

As they kissed, Nathan whispered, "I could love you forever."

Haley smiled, kissing him back, "So could I."

"I never want to lose you," Nathan looked at her, a look in his eyes that she hadn't seen before.

"You won't," she tried to assure him, but this didn't change the look on his face, "What?"

"Marry me," he said, rather matter-of-factly.

"Stop it," Haley laughed, sitting up, thinking he was joking.

"What, would you?" Nathan asked, looking at her, as she saw the serious look on his face.

"Nathan, that's crazy," Haley began, pausing before finishing with, "Is this about sex? Because I want to wait?"

"Nah, I can see you caving on that one already," he replied, his famous smirk adorning his face.

"Maybe so, but, Nathan, people don't get married when they've only known each other for a few months. It's not normal," Haley insisted.

"So?" Nathan countered, "I'm not normal. What I'm feeling for you is definitely not normal. To be honest, Haley, I don't ever want to be normal. Not with you. I'm serious."

Haley smiled, looking at him and intertwining their fingers, "I know you are."

"OK, so I'll say it again," Nathan began, "I could love you forever."

"Nathan, so could I but," Haley started, before Nathan cut her off.

"So then why can't forever start right now?"

* * *

 **A shorter chapter for you guys, but I am working on the next one already and it will hopefully be up later tonight or tomorrow!**

 **Hope you all enjoyed the twelfth chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	13. Chapter 13

Nathan sat next to Jamie on the bleachers at the river court. He wasn't sure how to say what he was about to say, but he knew he needed to say it now and get it over with.

"Can we talk, man to man?" Nathan asked, looking at the small boy.

"About what?" Jamie asked, looking up at him, an inquisitive look on his face.

"Well, Jamie, you know that I love your mom, right?" Nathan continued.

"Yeah, I hear you tell her ALL the time!" Jamie sighed, resting his chin in his hands on the basketball that was sitting in his lap.

"And you know that I love you too, right buddy?" Nathan continued, "I mean, you're the best friend I've ever had."

Jamie smiled, "I love you too Nathan. I'm glad you came to Tree Hill. You make mama smile. I like it when she smiles. And she smiles a lot more now that you're here."

* * *

"Well, Jamie, I wanted to ask your permission to marry your mom," Nathan finally asked, holding his breath as he waited for the five year old to respond.

Jamie had a thinking look on his face, as he pondered what Nathan had just said, "Married? Like Aunt Brooke and Uncle Lucas?"

"Yeah, buddy," Nathan said, "But since you're the man of the house, I wanted to ask if it would be okay with you."

"So, we'd be like a family?" Jamie asked.

"Yeah, we would," Nathan smiled.

Jamie paused for a few more moments, before smiling at Nathan, "Okay, you can marry mama."

Jamie hugged Nathan, and Nathan couldn't believe the feelings that he had for this boy. He had come to think of him like his own, especially after what Haley had told him about Chris denying to be the father. He never thought that at 23, he'd be a father, and about to be a husband. But, the whole reason he'd come to Tree Hill was to change, to become better. And Haley and Jamie had helped him do just that.

* * *

With Jamie's permission received, Nathan and Haley quickly began to piece together a wedding. They had four days now, before Nathan had to head back to Charlotte. After much debate, the two decided that only Jamie and Deb would be at the ceremony. Though it was hard to exclude her friends, who were more like family, Haley was a little worried that if she told them about the wedding, they would tell her that she should wait, and not rush into things.

" _Nathan, I really think we should let your mom be there," Haley insisted, as the two sat out on the deck of his beach house, watching Jamie play with a puzzle, "She's been really great to us, watching Jamie and helping out the café. The customers love her."_

" _I don't know Hales," Nathan answered, "The trust still isn't 100% there."_

" _She's your mother, Nathan," Haley looked at him, "And it's going to be the most important day of your life. She should be there. She will want to be there for you, for us."_

 _Nathan squeezed her hand, "I wish I could've met your parents. Told them how amazing and beautiful and talented their daughter is, and how lucky I am to have her in my life."_

 _Haley had told Nathan a while ago about her parents' accident. About a year after Jamie was born, they sold their house and bought an RV, to fulfill their lifelong dream of traveling the country. Though they loved Haley and their grandson very much, they wanted her to be able to care for her son on her own. She'd made the decision to have the baby, and they wanted her to be responsible. Only a few months after they'd left Tree Hill, a semi-truck had drifted into their lane and hit them head on. They were killed instantly._

* * *

Before they knew it, it was the day of the wedding. A cloudy, cool Saturday, which just helped to ensure that the beach would be relatively empty, giving Nathan and Haley the privacy that they'd wanted. Jamie and Nathan were at the beach house, getting ready, while Deb was helping Haley at her house.

"You look beautiful Haley," Deb smiled as Haley exited her bathroom, in a simple white knee length dress with cap sleeves.

"Thank you for being here Deb," Haley replied, "It means a lot to me and to Nathan too."

"Thank you for inviting me," Deb said, giving Haley a knowing look, "I know it was your idea. I know that I have a long road ahead of me with Nathan, to regain his trust, but I'm glad that he decided to let me come."

"You're his mom and he loves you," Haley sighed, tears brimming in her eyes, "Even if it's hard for him to show right now."

"Don't cry sweetheart, you'll ruin your makeup," Deb smiled, tears brimming in her own eyes, "I never thought I'd get to do this. I always wanted a daughter, and now I'm gaining the best one I could ever have. Thank you, for what you've done for my son."

* * *

An hour later, Haley and Nathan stood on a hill, surrounded by small purple flowers, the beach in the background as they held each other's hands, looking into each other's eyes. They were joined by the minister, who stood in front of them, and Deb and Jamie, who stood behind them.

Nathan slipped a beautiful diamond ring onto Haley's hand as he said, "Someday, this beach might wash away…the oceans may dry…the sun could dim but on that day, I'll still be loving you. Always and forever. I promise you Haley."

Haley smiled as she repeated what the minister told her to say, "I Haley, take you Nathan, to have and to hold from this day forward. In sickness and in health. For richer or poorer. For better or worse. I promise that I will love and cherish you, and will deny all things that come between us. I make this promise for eternity. A promise that I will keep forever. Until the end of time."

"And now, by the power vested in me by God and the state of North Carolina, I pronounce you man and wife," the minister said, "You may kiss the bride."

Haley and Nathan both smiled, as they shared a simple, sweet kiss.

* * *

After the ceremony, Deb was talking to the minister about how beautiful it had all been, and thanking him, as Nathan and Haley sat on the edge of Nathan's car, Jamie in between them. The two were still in a state of bliss.

"So now that you and Nathan are married mama, does that mean he's my dad?" Jamie asked, bringing the two adults back into reality very quickly.

"Well, I think that's up to you Jimmy Jam," Haley replied, "Do you want him to be?"

Even though it pained him to suggest it, Nathan added, "Jamie, if you don't want me to be your dad, that's okay. I can just keep being your friend."

"But, you do stuff with me, like Andre's dad. And you love me too. And Chuck doesn't have a dad," Jamie stated, "I think I want to have a dad too, like Andre."

"I would be honored to be your dad, Jamie," Nathan said, as Jamie put his arms around his neck, hugging him, "Aww, I love you buddy."

"I love you too Nathan. Does this mean I have to call you dad now?"

"Only if you want to," Nathan replied, as Deb approached the three of them.

"Alright, this is the cutest thing, wait, let me get a picture," Deb exclaimed, as she got out her phone and took a photo of the new family on the car. The minister then came up, offering to take a photo of all of them.

As Deb hesitantly stood next to Nathan, he turned to her and said, "Thank you for coming Mom."

* * *

Deb had taken Jamie to go get some ice cream, before taking him back to the apartment she'd recently gotten to have a sleepover for the night, to give the two newlyweds some alone time.

As Haley got out of the car, she was suddenly picked up. Smiling as she stared at her new husband, she asked, "Nathan, what are you doing?"

"Hey, if we're going to do this, we're going to do this right," he replied, carrying her into the home, setting her down.

Haley was speechless. There was a trail of white rose petals and white candles leading from the front door into the bedroom.

"You did all of this?" Haley asked, looking into the eyes of the man that she loved.

"I would do anything for you, my beautiful wife," Nathan replied, using the term for the first time, liking the way that it sounded.

Haley sighed, looking into his eyes, before taking his hand, leading him back to her bedroom.

"Haley, we don't," Nathan began, before Haley turned back to him, placing a finger to his lips.

"Shhhh," she said, pulling him onto the bed with her, "Make love to me my sexy husband."

* * *

The next morning, Nathan sat up in the bed, propped up on his elbow, watching Haley sleep, as she then opened her eyes.

"Hey you," he smiled at her.

Haley turned her face into the pillow and laughed, "I had the strangest dream, that we got married yesterday."

"Huh, I had the same dream," Nathan replied, as the two interlaced their fingers together, "Oh, that's right, we did get married."

"And you have to leave tomorrow," Haley sighed, tracing his chest with her fingers, "So you're going to move your stuff in here today, right?"

"Yeah, and I promise I'll be home as much as I can be," Nathan replied, kissing her before saying, "So, we have to break the news to everyone today."

"Can't we just stay like this forever?" Haley whined, wrapping her arms around her husband.

"I have a few things I need to do today, and packing is one of them," Nathan sighed, "Otherwise, I would stay in bed with you all day."

* * *

He kissed her once more, before getting out of bed and throwing on some clothes.

"After we tell everyone, how are we going to tell everyone else?" Haley asked, sitting up in bed, "You know, the world?"

"I don't want it getting out from some rat of a reporter trying to make some quick cash," Nathan said, "I want us to be the ones to release it."

"What if we took a picture and posted it to your Instagram?" Haley suggested, pulling on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, her hair still curled from yesterday, "Don't you have, like, 7 million followers or something?"

"More like 8 million," Nathan corrected her, smirking, "But yeah, I think that's a good idea. Later today, when I get back, alright?"

* * *

"You did what?" Lucas exclaimed, as he sat in his office in the locker room. He'd been going over inventory before Nathan had come in, telling him that he and Haley had gotten married yesterday.

"Look, Luke, I'm sorry I didn't tell you," Nathan began, "But we were worried you'd try to talk us out of it."

"You're damn right I would've talked you out of it," Lucas stated angrily, before taking a deep breath, cooling down a bit, "Nate, you're like a brother to me, you know that. And Haley is like my sister. And I know you two love each other. I see that, but marriage? It's a big step. And you're leaving tomorrow. Couldn't you have waited until after the season at least?"

"I know it's a big step, Luke, but we didn't want to wait," Nathan retorted, "You know that I love Haley and Jamie. I'm going to be there for them, forever now. I'm not going to mess this up, Luke. This is the best thing that's ever happened to me. Coming here, meeting Haley and Jamie. They're everything to me."

* * *

Haley had a similar reaction from Brooke and Peyton. Brooke was mostly upset that she hadn't gotten to design a "Brooke Davis Original" for Haley's wedding dress.

"So what are you going to do now that he's leaving?" Peyton asked, as the three of them sat at a table at an empty Karen's Café. It was a slow Sunday morning.

"Well, Jamie and I going to go to all the home games, and Nathan will be home on the weekends when he can," Haley answered, "It'll be hard, but I'm really happy, you guys.

* * *

The three sat in the café, chatting more about the wedding and the details, before they heard a honk from outside. The three turned to see Lucas and Nathan standing in front of a brand new car. Confused, they headed outside, Brooke with baby Liam in tow.

"What is this?" Haley questioned, narrowing her eyes as Nathan smiled at her, "What did you do Nathan Scott?"

"Look, babe, if you and Jamie are going to come to my games, you need a way to get there," Nathan said wrapping his arms around her waist, "A safe way. I don't want you breaking down on the side of the road in your old clunker."

"Nathan, this is way too much," Haley retorted, still shocked.

"Think of it as a wedding present," Nathan smiled, "Come on Hales. Let me do this for you."

* * *

Haley sighed, before looking into Nathan's eyes, "Let's take that picture."

The two had Peyton take a photo of their hands together, showing their rings, and then a picture of the two of them standing in front of the car, kissing, as Haley held out her left hand with her ring on it.

They put the two pictures together into a collage, before figuring out a caption for the Instagram photo: "Yesterday, I married the most beautiful girl in the world. Always and Forever Haley." He tagged her in the photo, before they each took a deep breath. He clicked post, and the likes and comments came flying in, faster than he could've ever imagined.

"And let the vultures descend," Haley sighed, leaning into Nathan's embrace.

* * *

 **Another shorter chapter than I usually post, but I wanted to get these out to you guys while I had the time! FYI, I'm not comfortable writing smut, which is why I did the Naley finally sleeping together scene as sort of a "fade to black."**

 **Hope you all enjoyed the thirteenth chapter of Show Me How to Live!**

 **Leave a review with any suggestions, comments, or ideas you want to see in future chapters!**


	14. Chapter 14

Haley sat on the edge of her bed, toying with the wedding ring on her finger. Nathan had left for Charlotte a few days before, leaving her and Jamie in Tree Hill.

She'd woken up this morning to headlines and news stories all about her.

 **NATHAN AND HALEY: SHOTGUN WEDDING?**

 **IS HALEY JAMES PREGNANT?**

"Josie Kent, reporting live from Charlotte. I'm standing outside of Time Warner Cable Arena, where inside, the Bobcats are practicing for their third game of the preseason. The team is welcoming back point guard Nathan Scott, who was suspended from play after his second arrest of the year. Following a summer of volunteer work in his hometown, Scott not only found a new side to himself, he told ESPN yesterday, but a new love as well. Scott wed Haley James, a singer and longtime resident of Tree Hill. Rumors have been flying about the couple's quick courtship and marriage, with most citing a pregnancy as the spark that started it all. We will keep you updated on this story, as the Bobcats prepare for their next game, tomorrow night against the Chicago Bulls."

* * *

"Hales, I'm sorry about all of this," Nathan said as he sat in the locker room after his practice.

"It's not your fault," Haley sighed, wiping the few tears that had welled in her eyes, "I just wish you were here. I don't know how to deal with all of the press on our doorstep by myself. Lucas thinks we should stay in a hotel, but I don't know."

"You shouldn't have to go through this alone," Nathan continued, "Maybe you should call Peyton, see if you and Jamie can stay there tonight, and give this some time to blow over?"

"Yeah, Jake's in Savannah visiting his brother, so I'm sure she'd like the company," Haley replied, "I just miss you. Guess I was spoiled getting to see you every day."

Nathan smiled, "I miss you too babe, but you'll see plenty of me tomorrow."

"Can't wait," Haley smiled, looking down at the wedding ring adorning her finger, "I love you husband."

"I love you too," Nathan replied, before hanging up the phone.

* * *

"I can't believe these stupid vultures from hell," Haley angrily said the next morning.

She and Jamie had ended up staying at Peyton's, and after taking Jamie to school, she and Peyton were at the studio.

"Haley, I told you I could take care of them," Peyton said, "I have a pretty mean right hook."

"Thanks, but I just wish they could find someone else's life to mess with," Haley scoffed, "I mean, first they call me a gold digger, and now they think the only reason Nathan and I got married was because I'm pregnant?"

"I'm on your side here Haley, you know that, but you've got to admit, it was a pretty sudden thing," Peyton expounded, "To people on the outside, who don't know you, it's a rational explanation."

Knowing she was right, Haley said, "I just wish I didn't have to deal with them."

"Well, even if you weren't married to an NBA superstar, you're about to go platinum," Peyton smiled, "This album is going to change your life, Haley. You're going to have to keep dealing with piranhas of the media for a lot longer than you want to."

"Thank you, Peyton, for all that you've done to help me," Haley replied, "I couldn't have done any of this without you."

"I'm just the producer. You wrote all the songs, you're the one with the great voice. But yeah, you're right, you couldn't have done it without me," Peyton smirked.

* * *

It was game day, Nathan's first game back with the Bobcats. 10 AM, and he headed into the arena he'd called home for the past few years for the team's morning shootaround. As he walked into the locker room, the guys all started to clap and cheer.

"And the prodigal son returns," Damien said, hugging Nathan, "Welcome back man."

"Thanks guys," Nathan smiled, heading to his locker, which was in between Owen's and Nino's.

"Yeah dude, it's good to have you back," Owen said, "We played like crap last game without you."

Nino looked at Nathan, shaking his head, "I'm happy to see you Nate, but if you ever pull any of that stupid angry, drunk fighting shit again, you'll have me to deal with."

"Point taken," Nathan nodded, as Nino smiled, "Did Mel put you up to that?"

"Yeah," Nino continued, "She's excited to meet Haley and Jamie tonight."

When Nathan had first joined the Bobcats, he and Nino had become fast friends. He became somewhat of a permanent fixture at Nino and his wife Melanie's house. She had always insisted on making them a big dinner the night before a home game. Last night, he'd wanted to skype with Haley and Jamie before Jamie went to bed, so it was the first one he'd ever missed.

Everyone made small talk as they changed, but it all went quiet as Coach Bobby Irons walked in.

"Sorry to interrupt social hour, ladies, but I'd appreciate it if you all got your asses out on the court," he snarked.

Coach Irons was tough, but everyone loved him. He ruled with his famous "Iron Fist," but it gained him the respect of the players, and he was able to connect with them on a personal level.

As the team headed out, Bobby stopped Nathan, a hand on his shoulder.

"You're on a short leash here, Nate," he stated, "One more slip-up, and you're out, for good."

"It won't happen again Coach, I can promise you that," Nathan assured him.

"Get out there," Bobby waved him on.

As Nathan was about to walk out the door, Coach Irons called out to him, "Nice interview with ESPN, by the way Scott."

* * *

" _As the Bobcats prepare for their third preseason game against the 2-0 Chicago Bulls, a familiar face rejoins them. Our own Josie Kent sat down with Nathan Scott earlier this morning to talk about his suspension, and how it's changed him, as a person and as a player."_

" _Nathan, first of all, welcome back to Charlotte," Josie said._

" _Thank you, it's good to be back," Nathan politely smiled._

 _These interviews were never Nathan's favorite thing, but it was all part of the job. He'd tried to get out of this one, but Clay and Coach Irons had made it impossible._

" _To most people, your suspension was inevitable. Your behavior wasn't exactly that of a stellar NBA player. How did the suspension help you?" Josie asked._

" _I think it gave me the wakeup call that I needed. I was acting like, to put it nicely, an ass. I was making poor choices, which not only affected me, but my team as well. I came close to losing my dream, and after knowing what that feels like that, I never want to know that feeling again."_

" _You used your time off to return to the town you spent your first 9 years of life in. Why did you choose Tree Hill?"_

" _It was the place where I first discovered the game. I guess I wanted to remember why I fell in love with the game in the first place."_

" _I bet you're glad that you went back there, now, as it led you to meeting your now-wife, Haley."_

 _Nathan knew that this would be a hot-button topic. He was blindly hoping that they would skip over Haley, but in reality, he knew it was inevitable._

" _Meeting Haley was the best thing that ever happened to me. She didn't let me get away with being a jerk, and she made me want to be a better person, for her and for her, well, our, son Jamie."_

" _So meeting Haley was better than basketball, than making it to the NBA?"_

 _Nathan didn't even have to think twice before answering, "Haley and Jamie are the best things that have ever happened to me."_

* * *

Haley and Jamie weren't able to leave for the game until Jamie got out of school, but then Haley had gotten a frantic call from Anna at the café, about one of the waitresses not showing up for her shift. Reluctantly, Haley had worked for a few hours until Deb was able to come in and cover.

With Deb working, and Lucas and Brooke staying home with a sick baby Liam, Haley and Jamie would be going to Charlotte by themselves for the game.

With Jamie in his Bobcats jersey, and Haley in her Bobcats shirt with "Scott #23" on the back, they were ready to support their favorite player. Haley, though, was nervous about her first public outing as Nathan's wife.

The two walked towards the back entrance, as Nathan had instructed her, they met with a security guard at the door.

"Um, hi," Haley stammered, "I'm.."

"Haley," the guard finished for her, "Right this way Mrs. Scott. We've been expecting you."

She was initially surprised that the guard knew who she was, but then she quickly remembered that almost everyone did nowadays. The guard led them through a channel of tunnels underneath the arena, for their privacy, but before they approached the entrance to where their seats would be, Haley assured him they could find them themselves.

She stood in the hall, holding Jamie's hand, taking a deep breath.

"Haley?" she heard a voice call out down the hall.

Turning, she saw an African-American woman who looked to be a few years older than her, wearing a shirt similar to her own.

"I'm Melanie Jones," the woman said.

"Nino's wife," Haley nodded, "It's so nice to finally meet you. Nathan's told me a lot about you."

"All good things I hope," Melanie smiled, "He asked me to meet you here. Didn't want you to be thrown to the wolves for your first game. Come on, I told him you'd be sitting with me."

* * *

Walking into the arena felt like walking into a different world. It was already three-quarters full, and there was still an hour until the game started. Fans were cheering, music was playing loudly, and the players were on the court, warming up.

A security guard followed closely behind the three, as they made their way to their courtside seats, behind the Bobcats' bench.

"So Jamie, is this your first basketball game?" Mel asked.

"What?" Jamie yelled, not able to hear over the roaring crowd and music.

"I'll take that as a yes," Mel laughed, as a college-aged girl approached the group.

"You're Haley James, right?" she nervously asked.

"Haley James-Scott, now, but yes," Haley replied, hesitantly.

"Can I get a photo? I saw you in concert five years ago. I'm a huge fan," the girl rambled, "I'm Amelia Irons. My dad is the coach of the Bobcats."

"It's nice to meet you Amelia," Haley smiled, as the two posed for a photo, taken by Mel.

Amelia left, after chatting with Haley and Mel for a little while.

"How does it feel to be famous?" Mel asked, a knowing look on her face.

"I would hardly call myself famous," Haley replied, but just as she said that, she noticed that there were a lot of press there taking photos, not just of her, but she knew that she was probably their main focus.

Mel took a sip of her drink, "Welcome to the BWC."

Haley gave her a confused look, before Mel elaborated, "Basketball Wives Club. Photo ops and crazy fans are part of the territory. You'll get used to it."

* * *

"Come on Haley, we don't have much time," Mel said, as she led the group down to the bench.

"Are you sure this is okay?" Haley asked, holding Jamie's hand.

"I've been doing this for five years, Haley. Trust me, it helps them see us before the game," Mel insisted.

The team had just gotten done with warm-ups, and had about five minutes before they had to head back to the locker room. Mel quickly left the group to go to her husband, leaving Haley and Jamie to wait for Nathan.

Standing nervously behind the bench, Haley's nerves melted away when her eyes caught those familiar blues.

"You made it," Nathan smiled, taking her hand and interlacing their fingers.

"You looked great," she replied.

"I'm a little nervous," Nathan said, looking around at the crowds, "I have a lot to prove."

"You'll be fine, I know it," Haley assured, looking at the man she loved.

"What do you think of all this Jamie?" Nathan asked, looking at the wide-eyed little boy.

"This is awesome," Jamie smiled.

"Scott, let's go!" Coach called, standing by the tunnel to the locker rooms.

"That's my cue," Nathan sighed, "I'll see you later, okay? I love you."

He turned to walk away before Jamie called out, "Nathan!"

Nathan turned to look at the boy who was now his son.

"All you can do is your best, okay?" the five year old smiled.

* * *

As the starting lineups began, the crowd roared.

"And at point guard, please welcome back #23, Nathan Scott," the announcer said.

Haley was surprised to hear boos from the crowd. Not a lot, but enough to be heard, and she could tell by the split-second change of the look on Nathan's face that he'd noticed. This just made her, Jamie, and Mel cheer even louder from him. He looked to her in the stands, pointing to his heart and then pointing to her and Jamie.

* * *

Thankfully, the team won their game, and Nathan had scored 30 points. Her first game in the "BWC" had been a success, thanks to Mel and Jamie. She wouldn't have been able to do if she'd been all alone.

She'd taken a few more photos with, it was hard for her to say, fans. She and Jamie waited patiently with Mel for the guys to come out of the locker room.

"There he is mama," Jamie pointed, running out onto the court and jumping into Nathan's arms, "Nathan, you were so cool. You did the fade away two times. Remember when you taught me how to do that?"

"I sure do bud," Nathan smiled, setting Jamie back onto the floor as he started running around the court.

"Jamie, stay close sweetie," Haley called out, but it fell on deaf ears.

"He's fine Hales," Nathan assured her, "This place is crawling with security. He won't get far."

"You played great," Haley smiled, wrapping her arms around him, "I knew you had nothing to worry about."

"I just did what Jamie told me to: the best I could," he replied, placing a kiss to her forehead, "But I couldn't have done it without my beautiful wife."

"Hey, what about me?" Jamie questioned, looking at the two of them with his arms crossed.

"I couldn't have done it without you either, Jimmy-Jam," Nathan smiled, "You give pretty good advice for a five year old."

"That's what they tell me," Jamie said matter-of-factly, making Haley and Nathan laugh.

"Do you really have to get back tonight?" Nathan asked, "You can't stay?"

"Ugh, I wish we could, but I have to work tomorrow, and I promised Peyton I would make time to help her in the studio too," Haley sighed, "She's really starting to stress about my album coming out next month. You'll try to be home for that, right?"

"I wouldn't miss your album release party for the world, Hales," Nathan assured her.

* * *

"Hey, Haley, are you free tonight?" Peyton asked, as she sat at the counter at Karen's during the morning rush.

"Jamie is going to Andre's for a sleepover," Haley answered, "Nathan and I were going to Skype. Why?"

"I was going to go to Wrightsboro," Peyton explained, "There's an open mic night at this coffee shop that my friend Julian goes to. There's a girl that's been playing there, and he says that she's really good. I was hoping you could help me scout the talent?"

"But I promised Nathan…" Haley began.

"Lover boy can go without seeing your face for one night, Haley, please? This would really help me out. I want to make sure I make the right choice before I sign someone else," Peyton pleaded.

"You owe me big time Peyton," Haley sighed, picking up her phone to text Nathan.

 _ **Can't Skype tonight. Have to help Peyton "scout new talent." Rain check? 3**_

A few minutes later, during what she presumed was a water break at his practice, he replied:

 _ **Call me when you get home, though. Need to hear your voice!**_

She smiled, knowing that being away from her, even for the week and a half that it had been, was killing him. They had just gotten married, and already 200 miles were separating them.

 _ **Always and forever. I love you.**_

* * *

The coffee shop had about ten people in it, including Haley and Peyton. Not a huge crowd, and only a few performers at this open mic night, but Wrightsboro wasn't exactly known for its music scene.

A man sang the last note of "Jailhouse Rock" very off-key, finishing before exiting the stage with weak clapping from the "audience," if you could call it that.

A young girl took the stage next, looking completely nervous, her long hair hiding her face, as she sat in front of the microphone, guitar in hand.

She began to play "Hallelujah," and as soon as she started to sing, goosebumps formed on Haley's skin. Her voice was incredible. A little shaky, from the nerves, but there was raw talent that was clearly there.

"She's great, right?" Peyton whispered to Haley, who nodded, as they kept listening to her.

Soon, she was done, gathering WAY more applause than the last guy. To their surprise, she set her guitar behind the counter and put on an apron and began to clean the counters, as closing time approached.

"Excuse me," Peyton said, as she and Haley approached her, "That was a great performance."

"Um, thanks," she nervously answered, "What can I get you?"

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about music," Peyton replied, "I'm Peyton Sawyer, and I run a music label called Red Bedroom Records in Tree Hill. This is Haley James Scott, she's one of the artists I represent."

Mia's eyes widened as she heard Peyton say the words "music label."

"What's your name, first of all?" Haley asked.

"Uh, I'm uh, Mia," the girl stammered, "Mia Catalano."

"Do you have time to sit down and talk for a minute?" Peyton asked, as most of the people had left already.

The three sat down at one of the tables.

"So tell us about yourself Mia," Haley smiled.

"Well, I'm 18, and I work at a coffee shop," Mia said, blushing when she realized that they were in the coffee shop she worked in, "I've lived in Wrightsboro my whole life."

They discussed her background in music, her family, and what she wanted to do with her life.

"Would you be willing to move to Tree Hill?" Peyton asked.

"I'm barely scraping by, paying my rent with this job," Mia began.

"I own and manage a café in Tree Hill, Mia," Haley interjected, "You'd have a job."

"Here's my card," Peyton said, handing it to her, "Think about it, and give me a call."

* * *

"I have a good feeling about her," Haley smiled as they drove back to Tree Hill.

"You know, Haley, you're a great singer," Peyton began, "But I've always admired how great you are with people. If Mia says yes, would you want to help with her record?"

"You trust me that much?" Haley questioned.

"Well, I'm going to need some help at the studio here soon, especially when the baby comes," Peyton said, smiling.

"Peyton, no way!" Haley replied excitedly, "How long have you known?"

"Just a few weeks," she answered, "Jake and I wanted to wait to tell everyone, but you know how I've been getting really sick? I couldn't keep saying it was the flu. I knew you would start to catch on."

"I'm really happy for you guys," Haley smiled.

"Everything is starting to come full circle," Peyton stated, "Five years ago, Brooke, and Lucas, and you and I were in high school, and now we all have kids of our own. It's kind of like we're finally finding our way to our happy endings, you know?"

"Isn't that what life is about?" Haley began, "If we're not out there looking for the ones we want to be with forever, then what are we doing?"

* * *

 **Sorry for the month between updates everyone! I received some very negative feedback from some guest reviews that really hurt me, and I felt like I couldn't effectively write this story anymore.**

 **However, thanks to the amazing reviews and words of encouragement from MelBelle033, I am back writing this story! Huge shout-out to her, and definitely check out her story, "Worth the Fight," a Friday Night Lights fanfiction inspired by my story!**


	15. Chapter 15

_**One month later…**_

Haley was working at the café with Mia. She'd made the move to Tree Hill, and had started recording a few weeks ago. The two were getting along really well. Mia was like the little sister that Haley had never had. The time had finally come. Her album release party was the next day. Peyton had already begun planning a tour for the coming summer, all over the U.S.

Nathan had been so busy with basketball that he'd only been home for a few days in the past month. Though it disappointed Haley, and Jamie, to not have him there, she knew what she'd signed on for when she married him. He had told her he wouldn't be able to make it home until right before the party, so both she and Jamie were excited to see him then.

* * *

Nathan was shooting around at the court he'd always gone to in high school, similar to the river court in Tree Hill. It was Friday morning, and he'd be heading back to Tree Hill for Haley's album release soon. He heard footsteps as he sank a three, and felt his anger boil as he saw who approached him, clapping slowly.

"Nice shot, son," Dan Scott said, a smirk on his face, "Thought I might find you here."

"What are you doing here?" Nathan replied, retrieving the ball and holding it under his arm.

"My son is back in the NBA, where he belongs," Dan replied, "Just thought I'd come say hi, welcome you back."

"Well, you said it, so you're free to go," Nathan sighed, turning away from Dan.

"You know, Nathan, despite my best efforts, you stayed with her," Dan sneered, "She must be really good in the sack for you to take on all that baggage."

Despite the sudden urge to punch his father in the face, Nathan held back. You never knew if there was a photographer in the bushes or someone walking by. Coach Irons had said one more screw up and he was done. He had to protect his career, for his family's sake. And he didn't want to be an angry asshole anymore. He'd leave that to the man he used to call Dad.

"You better shut your damn mouth about Haley," Nathan warned, taking a step closer to Dan, "And what the hell do you mean, despite your best efforts?"

"Ugh, Nathan, do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" Dan questioned, "I heard she's still hanging around, too. Be careful, son."

"I asked you a question, Dan," Nathan said coldly, "All that stuff that came out about Haley and me in the tabloids…that was you, wasn't it?"

"I was doing it all to protect you, son," Dan insisted.

"Don't call me that," Nathan quickly interrupted, "You don't get to call me that anymore. You're going to leave Haley and me alone, and mom too. If you come anywhere near us again, I'll call the police."

"What, no sucker punch to the face this time?" Dan continued.

"You're not even worth it," Nathan shook his head, rolling his eyes.

"Wow, one quickie wedding and suddenly you turn into Ghandi," Dan sighed, looking at Nathan, "I'm sorry, Nathan, is that what you want me to say? I don't want you throwing away everything we worked so hard for to play happy family."

"We?" Nathan shouted, "I am where I am today in spite of everything you did, Dan. I went to Duke. I made it to the NBA. You don't get to take the credit because you put a ball in my hands before I could walk."

"Tell your mother I send my best," Dan replied calmly, walking back to his car.

* * *

Haley was sitting at the counter at home later that afternoon, listening to music and trying to make schedules for the café for the next week. Jamie had just gotten home from school, and was playing in his room.

She didn't hear the front door open. She never saw the point in locking it. It was a small town. She didn't hear the man quietly walk in, as her back faced the door.

She jumped when she felt hands touch her waist, accompanied by, "Hey baby!"

"You scared me, you wonderful man!" she smiled, wrapping her arms around the newly-returned home Nathan.

"I missed you," he sighed, holding her tight.

"Good, now shut up and kiss me," Haley said, as the two shared a sweet, but passionate kiss, "What are you doing here? I thought you weren't going to make it till tomorrow?"

"Doesn't matter how I got here," Nathan replied, "I'm here for the whole weekend and I plan on spending it with my family."

"I'm really glad you're home," Haley sighed, "It's been crazy, with the café, and helping Mia, and getting ready for this party."

"It's gonna be great, Hales," Nathan smiled, as Jamie ran into the room.

"Nathan, you're back!" Jamie exclaimed, running to hug him.

"I missed you boy," Nathan said.

"I missed you too," Jamie replied, "Can we go to the Rivercourt? Uncle Skills took me the other day, but he always blocks my shots."

"Actually, bud," Nathan began.

He'd been hoping for some alone time with Haley, after not seeing her in person for a month.

"You two should go," Haley smiled, a knowing look in her eyes of what had been on his mind, "I have to go help Peyton set up for the party anyway, and then I promised Lucas and Brooke I'd babysit Liam tonight."

* * *

"I don't know how you did this as a teenager," Nathan said, as he walked around the living room later that night.

He was holding Liam close to his chest, trying to get him to stop crying, "I'm a professional athlete and I'm exhausted after babysitting for three hours."

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad," Haley stifled a laugh, "The spit up and pee should come right out in the wash."

Liam had finally stopped crying, and Nathan sat down next to Haley, seeing that he had finally fallen asleep.

"Two months ago, you were scared to even hold him," Haley stated, "And you just got him to stop crying all by yourself. I think you're a shoe-in for the favorite uncle."

"I better be," Nathan replied, "This is my favorite shirt."

The two laughed quietly, as Haley leaned her head on Nathan's shoulder, stroking Liam's back as he slept on Nathan's chest.

"So how does it feel to be back on the team?" Haley whispered.

"Mostly tired, and sore," Nathan sighed, "But it's good to be home though. Just take a break from it all."

"Because you're not going to be tired and sore after this weekend," Haley whispered in his ear, her hand not stroking his arm.

The moment was interrupted, however, by Jamie's cries, "Ahh a monster! It's going to get me!"

"Hang on baby, I'm coming," Haley sat up, beginning to walk to Jamie's room.

"No, I want daddy," Jamie said, as Liam stirred on Nathan's chest.

Haley turned to look at Nathan, tears welling in her eyes. That was the first time that Jamie had called Nathan "dad."

"Looks like you're being summoned, Daddy," Haley smiled, reaching for baby Liam, cradling him in her arms.

* * *

"What's going on buddy?" Nathan asked, sitting on the edge of Jamie's bed.

"There was a monster coming in the window," Jamie replied, pointing a shaking finger at the closed and locked window.

"It was just a dream, Jamie," Nathan said, "Just pretend. I'm not going to let anyone or anything hurt you, I promise."

"But what about when you're not here?" Jamie questioned, "Who will keep us safe?"

Nathan looked at the five year old, wise beyond his years.

"When I'm away, you're the man of the house," Nathan explained, "I need you to be brave and take care of your mom for me. Do you think you can do that?"

"I'll be brave for mama," Jamie nodded, looking around the room, leaning closer to Nathan and whispering, "But could you still check my closet and under the bed?"

"Of course," Nathan smiled, ruffling Jamie's hair.

"Thanks dad," Jamie whispered, already falling back asleep.

Nathan had only been in Jamie's room for ten minutes, but when he walked back out to the living room, Haley was asleep, baby Liam snoring on her chest.

He smiled, starting to walk to the couch when some new photos on the wall caught his eye. One was from the last day of basketball camp of Lucas, Nathan, and Jamie. Another was of Nathan, Jamie, and Haley from the wedding.

As he sat on the couch, careful to wake Haley and Liam, he picked up the framed photo on the end table. It was from Haley's high school graduation, of her, and her mom and dad. He remembered when she'd told him about her parents. It had been right after his mom came to Tree Hill, and he'd lost it.

* * *

 **FLASHBACK**

 _After Nathan had stormed out of the café, following the surprise return of his mother, he didn't know where to go. He walked around for a while, trying to suppress the anger that was boiling inside of him. Before he knew it, he found himself on a familiar doorstep._

" _I had a feeling you'd be showing up here," Lucas said, as he stepped onto his front porch, taking a seat and crossing his arms in front of his chest, "So, what do you want to talk about Nate?"_

" _I screwed up man," Nathan shook his head, placing it in his hands._

" _Yeah, your mom seemed pretty upset," Lucas agreed, before Nathan glared up at him._

" _Not with her, with Haley," Nathan corrected him, "I lost it in front of her. She looked terrified. I never wanted her to be afraid of me. God, man, I ruin everything I touch."_

" _I don't think she was as much scared as she was hurt, Nate," Lucas answered, leaning back in his chair, "I just got off the phone with her. She just doesn't understand how you could not even give your mom a chance, you know?"_

" _Yeah, well, she hasn't lived my life," Nathan sighed, "I used to think it would be easier if they were gone, so I didn't have to deal with them."_

 _Lucas looked at his cousin, who was more like his little brother, sadness in his eyes, "She hasn't told you."_

" _Told me what?" Nathan asked, confused._

" _Look, man, it's not my place to be saying anything," Lucas began, before sighing, "But the reason Haley was so upset with the way you acted with your mom is because she wishes she was in that situation: her mom standing right in front of her. Her parents died, Nate."_

* * *

 _Nathan had gone to Haley's the next morning, giving her flowers and apologizing. She'd told him that Karen had offered Deb a job, and that she'd be staying in town for a while. She asked him to at least give her a chance._

" _God, I don't know how you can be so strong and level-headed about this," he said, "What would I do without your voice of reason?"_

" _It's a gift," Haley smiled, as Nathan brushed his lips over hers._

" _I'll talk to my mom, Hales," Nathan replied, "But I can't forgive her. Not yet."_

 _After Jamie and Nathan went to the river court, he dropped him off at Lucas', so he and Haley could talk, alone. They sat in the living room, where, for the first time, Nathan noticed a framed photo on the end table, of Haley and her mom and dad at her high school graduation._

" _Hales, what happened to your parents?" Nathan asked out right, not being particularly sensitive, "We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, but Lucas told me that they passed away."_

 _Haley took a deep breath, nodding her head, "No, it's okay. I know all about your family. Why shouldn't you know about mine?"_

 _Her voice trembled as she uttered that last sentence, and his hand instinctively covered hers._

" _It was about a year after I'd had Jamie," she began, "I'd just moved out of my parents' house, into this place. With me gone, they decided to fulfill their lifelong dream of traveling the country in an RV."_

" _So, they left you with a baby, alone?" Nathan questioned, starting to feel a bit bothered by that fact._

" _I told them that I wanted to do this without their help," Haley replied, "I made the decision to be a mother, and I had to live with that. It was my responsibility. Anyway, they'd been gone for a few months when I got the call. A deer had run out in front of them. My parents were hippies, animal lovers, so they swerved to miss it and lost control. They were….they were killed instantly."_

" _Haley, I'm so sorry," Nathan said, reaching up to wipe a tear from her cheek._

" _So when you told me about your dad, and I saw you with your mom," Haley continued, "I just didn't get it. At least you had parents who were alive, who you could talk to, who could be there for you."_

" _I didn't understand, but now I do," Nathan stated, "I'll try with my mom, Haley. I'll hear her out."_

 **END FLASHBACK**

"Were you watching me sleep?" Haley sleepily asked as her eyes fluttered open, hands cradling the infant on her chest.

"And what if I was?" Nathan replied, playing with the ends of her hair.

"Well, stop it," Haley giggled, closing her eyes again, "It's creepy."

* * *

With Jamie at Andre's for a sleepover, Haley and Nathan were at TRIC the next night, back in one of the dressing rooms, as Haley prepared to make her "grand entrance," at Brooke's insistence. However, she couldn't stop pacing.

"Hales, you're going to put a hole in the floor," Nathan said, grabbing her shoulders to stop her, "You're going to be great."

"What if they hate my set? What if I get booed off the stage? What if…" Haley rambled, before Nathan kissed her. He'd found that it was the best way to get her to stop freaking out.

"Thanks," Haley sighed, looking into Nathan's eyes, "For coming back, for dealing with my crazy, for marrying me."

"You'd better stop, or I just might kiss you again," Nathan interrupted, before kissing her again anyway.

They broke apart when they heard the door open, turning to see Mia in the doorway.

"Uh, sorry, Haley. Peyton asked me to come get you," she said, nervously running a hand through her hair.

"Wow, Mia, you look incredible," Haley smiled, intertwining her fingers with Nathan's.

"Oh, um, thanks," she nervously stammered, smoothing out her purple dress and shoving her hands in the pockets of her leather jacket, "Brooke and Peyton thought I should start dressing like a rock star, I guess. Anyway, they're ready for you."

"I'll be right there," Haley answered, as Mia shut the door, "That's my cue."

However, she remained where she was, unable to move.

"You know, the stage won't come to you, Hales," Nathan reminded her.

"I know," she took a deep breath, "I'm ready."

* * *

"Ladies and gentleman, Haley James Scott," Peyton introduced, as she left the stage, and Haley walked out.

TRIC was packed, probably breaking the maximum occupancy rules, but no one cared.

"Hi everyone," Haley smiled, "Wow, if you would've told me a few months ago that I would be married and releasing my first album, I would've told you that you were insane."

The crowd laughed, as Haley sighed, "But, here I am, happier than I've ever been, thanks to my son, and my husband, and my amazing friends who helped me get to where I am today. Anyway, I want to show you guys some of my new songs, and, uh, thanks for showing up. I hope you like it."

After performing "Halo," "Maybe," and "Feel This," Haley stepped off the stage, unable to process the extremely positive response from the crowd.

She was maneuvering through the crowd, trying to find Nathan, while thanking those who congratulated and complimented her. She posed for a few photos before running into Peyton.

"So Mama-To-Be, what'd you think?" Haley asked, smiling.

"Haley, you were great, but there's something I need to talk to you about," Peyton said, sounding serious.

"Ok, but can it wait? I'm trying to find Nathan, but this crowd is impossible," Haley replied.

"Actually, Haley, it can't," Peyton looked at her nervously, "It's about Chris."

The name made Haley stop dead in her tracks, the room suddenly feeling 10 degrees colder.

"What about him?" Haley questioned.

"He's coming to record at Red Bedroom," Peyton said very fast.

"WHAT?" Haley exclaimed, her blood boiling at the thought of him anywhere near Jamie and her.

"Haley, it wasn't my call," Peyton explained, "The parent label thinks we need more exposure, and he's an established artist. I said no, but I signed a contract with them, Haley. I can't back out of it, or I'll be sued."

"But how…?" Haley stammered, not able to finish her thought.

"He's from Tree Hill, and with that story that broke about you and him before," Peyton sighed, "I'm pretty sure they just want to stir up drama and publicity. You don't know how sorry I am Haley, I'm trying to figure out how to fix this, I swear to you."

Haley was still trying to process what Peyton had just told her when she heard a voice behind her.

"Excuse me, can I get an autograph?"

* * *

Her heartbeat calmed down at the sound of her husband's voice. She turned and jumped into his arms, all the while trying to rid herself of the thoughts than were now circling in her mind.

"You were amazing babe," Nathan smiled, setting her down and handing her a bouquet of purple flowers, "I knew you would be."

"It felt good," Haley replied, forcing a smile on her face.

"I think my wife needs a drink," Nathan stated, taking her hand and leading her towards the bar.

"You have no idea," Haley said softly, trying to figure out how things could go from great to disastrous in one night.

* * *

 **Another chapter done! What do you think?**

 **~For those of you who may think too many things are happening/why can't things be good for Nathan and Haley for a while…well, welcome to how I felt when I watched the series! I am trying to make this relatable to the show, where just when you think things are going good….BAM, something else happens!**

* * *

 **Favorite, follow, and review please! I am so thankful to all of you who read this story, whether you leave a review or not. Your support, just by reading, means the world to me! 3**


	16. Chapter 16

**A few weeks later…**

Haley sat at the café, on the morning of Halloween, thinking about all that had happened over the past few weeks.

 **FLASHBACK**

 _The morning after Haley's album release party, the two laid in bed, Haley's hand tracing Nathan's chest._

" _I can try to stay for a few more days," Nathan offered, his arm around Haley, pulling her closer to him._

" _No, you can't," Haley smiled, "It'll be okay. Peyton is going to make sure that I am nowhere near the studio when he's there. Lucas and Skills have already volunteered for guard duty. You have to go back."_

" _I just wish you didn't have to do this alone," Nathan sighed, "You know, if you ever need me, I'm just a phone call away. I can be here in an hour to kick Chris Keller's ass."_

" _I know," Haley laughed, "And I love you for being so protective over me and Jamie. But I knew that this day would come. I just didn't think it would be now."_

 **END FLASHBACK**

* * *

She had left early that morning, leaving Nathan and Jamie at home. The sun was just coming up, and Chef Jeff and Adam would be arriving soon. There'd been no run-ins with Chris. Peyton said he'd been at the studio for the past couple days, and she was ready to just let herself get sued by the way he was acting.

She'd been secretly hoping that she would be able to avoid him while he was here, but it was a small town. She was bound to run into him eventually, despite her bodyguard detail. There was so much that she'd wanted to say to him, which had built up over the past five years.

Jamie had started calling Nathan "Dad." It was a big step, and Nathan was thrilled. With the news of Chris' return to Tree Hill coming on the heels of this milestone, though, it had gotten her worried. Though he'd shown absolutely no interest in being a father, and even though he wasn't on the birth certificate, DNA doesn't lie. In the back of her mind, she was afraid that one day, he would take her to court and take Jamie away from her. That was her biggest fear.

* * *

Nathan and Haley would be taking Jamie, Chuck, and Andre trick or treating, and then would drop Jamie off for a sleepover at Deb's, allowing them to go to the Halloween party that Peyton was throwing at TRIC.

Over the past few months, Haley and Deb had gotten close. They would work together at the café, have dinners together with Jamie, and Deb had even come to Nathan's last basketball game in Charlotte. She was doing well, trying her best to fully earn Nathan's trust back. Tonight would be the first night she'd babysat Jamie.

The married couple was not too keen on dressing up, and since they were both going to be busy in the weeks leading up to the party, they'd naively allowed Brooke to get our costumes.

"Brooke, I can't wear this," Haley stated, turning around to face her in the Wonder Woman costume she'd picked out for me.

"Haley James Scott, you, my dear, are smoking," Brooke smiled, "I did such a good job!"

The blue spandex shorts were just that: short. And the top was like a bustier, something Haley would never be caught dead in.

"I'm a mom, Brooke, I can't take a group of five year olds trick or treating wearing this," Haley insisted, trying to adjust the almost nonexistent costume.

"Just wait until you see what I got for Nathan," Brooke squealed, "Ahh, I just love couples costumes!"

* * *

"Remind me again why we let Brooke choose our costumes?" Nathan asked as they walked hand in hand down the street, the boys running ahead of them.

Nathan was dressed as Superman, complete with suit, tie, ripped open shirt, and fake glasses.

"At least we know now for next year," Haley replied, smiling up at him, "At least you can pull it off. I look ridiculous."

"Ridiculous or not," Nathan whispered, "If it wasn't extremely inappropriate, I'd have my way with you right here Wonder Woman."

Haley playfully shoved him away, giggling, a blush coming to her cheeks.

"I know I haven't said it lately," Nathan began, pulling her to a stop as the boys ran up to a house, "But, god, Hales, you're sexy as hell."

They were interrupted by Jamie's voice, as the three boys approached them, their buckets already almost full.

"Mama, Daddy, come on, we've gotta get more candy!" Jamie cried, as the three boys began to run to the next house.

"Woah, slow down guys," Haley laughed, "Back to reality, Superman, let's go."

* * *

The family's last stop of the night was Karen's. Deb was closing, and Haley wanted to talk to her before heading over to TRIC for the party.

"Gramma Deb," Jamie cheered, running to give her a hug, "Look at all the candy I got!"

"How much have you eaten already?" she questioned, laughing.

"I told him he couldn't have anymore," Haley warned, giving him the knowing mom look, "Thank you again, for watching him. He's been talking about this sleepover all week."

"Well, you two deserve some alone time while Nathan's home," Deb winked.

The bells on the door jingled, as it opened.

Haley turned, "I'm sorry, we're…"

She didn't get to finish what she was saying, as she came face to face with the one person she never wanted to see: Chris Keller.

"Still not locking the door there, huh Hales?" he asked, a smirk on his face.

Nathan instinctively stood up from his seat at the counter, standing slightly in front of Haley.

"Deb, can you take Jamie and go please?" Haley insisted, "Nathan and I will lock up."

"Bye mama," Jamie said, hugging her before hugging Nathan, "Bye daddy."

Deb led Jamie out the back door, leaving Nathan and Haley to face Chris.

"If you know what's good for you, you'll leave right now," Nathan warned.

"Ahh, but Chris Keller just got here," Chris replied, "Congrats on the wedding, by the way. Careful though Nate, she'll get pregnant and try to trap you."

Nathan took a step forward, ready to knock the lights out of the poor excuse of a man standing in front of him, but Haley grabbed his arm, pulling him back.

"What are you doing here Chris?" Haley asked, suddenly feeling even more vulnerable than she had already been, standing half-naked in front of her ex.

"I have been here for a few weeks, and still haven't seen you," Chris explained, "Thought you might be avoiding me."

"She has every right to avoid you, you arrogant son of a bitch," Nathan retorted, "Now, if I were you, I'd leave now, before you get your ass beat."

"Alright, Chris Keller can sense some tension here," he raised his arms in surrender, "Haley, if you want to talk, you know where I'll be."

He turned to leave, opening the door and taking one step out, before turning back around.

"Oh, and Hales, Chris Keller made a pretty cute kid, don't you think?" he smiled, before walking out.

"Go to hell!" Nathan yelled, as the door slammed shut.

Nathan was seething, "How could he say that? After all that he's done to you, after he denied you and Jamie, he says that he made a cute kid? God Hales, you don't know how much I want to give that guy a piece of my mind."

"I couldn't say anything," Haley stammered, "I've been thinking about what I would say if I saw him for the last five years. And the time finally came, and I couldn't say anything."

"I think I said plenty for the both of us," Nathan sighed, wrapping his arms around her waist, "Hey, let's forget about him. I'm not going to let him ruin this night. I have to leave tomorrow, and tonight, I just want to spend time with my beautiful wife."

* * *

"Haley, Nathan, you made it!" Peyton exclaimed, as she and Jake stood by the stage with Brooke and Lucas.

"Sorry we're late," Haley smiled.

"I'm going to get us some drinks," Nathan said, as Lucas and Jake joined him to go to the bar, leaving the three best friends.

"So, how's my niece doing?" Haley asked, "Or nephew, but I'm hoping for a niece."

"He or she is fine," Peyton laughed, "You'll know what it is in a few weeks."

"Imagine if Liam and your little girl ended up together," Brooke exclaimed, "How cute would that be?"

"Woah, Brooke," Peyton stopped her, "I'm barely able to think about what I'm going to eat for breakfast tomorrow, let alone who my daughter, or son, is going to date."

"What do you think Haley?" Brooke asked, "P Sawyer and I are finally joining your mommy team!"

"Babysitting Liam the other night," Haley began to answer, "Gosh, it's hard for me to remember when Jamie was that small."

"You and 23 better get busy making me a niece then," Brooke smiled, and before Haley could say anything, the guys came back with the drinks.

Nathan slipped an arm around Haley's waist, "So what'd we miss?"

Brooke smirked at Haley, "Nothing, just girl talk."

* * *

The next morning, Haley reached over to wrap her arm around Nathan, but found his side of the bed empty. She opened her eyes, seeing her husband buttoning up a light blue oxford shirt.

"Is it Sunday already?" Haley whined.

"I'm afraid so," Nathan leaned down to kiss her, as she grabbed his collar, pulling him on top of her, "Woah, babe, as much as I would like to have a replay of last night, and this morning, my flight leaves soon."

Haley sighed, sitting up in the bed, pulling the covers up around her naked body, "Good luck tomorrow."

Nathan had a game in Indianapolis on Monday, Utah on Wednesday, before coming back for a game against Toronto in Charlotte on Friday.

"Thanks baby," Nathan smiled, "I'll call you when I land, okay?"

"Okay," Haley replied, "Tell Clay not to let you party too hard when you win though, alright?"

Clay had made a point of throwing parties when the Bobcats won, no matter where they were on the road. This made Haley a little nervous, but she trusted Nathan, and knew that with all the stress and pressure he was under, it was good for him to let off a little steam after a game.

"I'll see you on Friday," Nathan said, as he picked up his bags, leaning to kiss her forehead.

"Can't wait," Haley smiled, before snuggling back up in bed.

* * *

Haley took a deep breath as she stood outside of the door to Red Bedroom Records later that morning. She'd stayed away for as long as she could, but Mia was recording today, and Peyton wasn't feeling well. Haley had to be there to help Mia, despite the fact that Chris could show up.

"Hey Mia, are you ready?" she asked, setting her bag down, "I thought we could start with "It's Only Life."

"Do you really think I'm ready Haley?" Mia asked nervously, fiddling with the zipper on her hoodie.

Haley sighed, looking at the nervous girl, before pulling the hoodie off of her arms, throwing it on the back of a chair, "Mia, Peyton wouldn't have signed you if she didn't think you were ready. You can do this."

Mia took a breath before walking into the booth. As she sat down in front of the mic, Haley played back the track.

About an hour later, Haley signaled for Mia to come out. She wanted her to hear what she'd just done.

"It took a few takes, Mia, but that was great, really," Haley smiled, as they listened to the recording.

"Yeah, not bad rookie," the sound of Chris' voice behind them made both Haley and Mia jump.

Haley knew exactly what to say now, "We're a little busy here, Chris."

"Chris Keller is supposed to record with Peyton today," Chris said, pulling a chair up and putting his feet on the desk.

Haley shoved his feet off, nearly making him fall out of his chair, "Well, Peyton's not in today, so you'll have to come back tomorrow."

"Chris Keller doesn't like waiting," he retorted, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Haley, thank you for working with me today," Mia stammered, standing up, "But I have to go or I'm going to be late for my shift at the café."

* * *

Now, Haley was alone with the person she hated most in the world.

"Guess it's just you and me Hales," Chris smiled, "Just like old times."

"Shut the hell up, okay Chris?" Haley finally snapped, "You know what? You don't get to talk to me. You denied my son, called me a whore, and then think that you can just waltz back here after five years like nothing happened?"

"Woah, slow your roll there princess," Chris replied, "I'm sorry, okay? Chris Keller isn't exactly Daddy material, you know? That would have changed my career, my life, everything."

"And it didn't change mine? I had to grow up, something you clearly still haven't done," Haley retorted, before sighing, now slightly calmer, "You know what, Chris. I'm not sorry that I slept with you. Because out of that, I got the most amazing gift, in my son. And he has a dad now, who loves him, and who loves me. And you don't get to mess that up."

She picked up her bag, and started to walk out.

"Haley, wait," Chris called.

"Save it Chris, you're not worth my time," Haley coldly answered, not even bothering to turn around.

* * *

"Well this is a surprise," Brooke said, as she let Haley into her house, and they both took a seat on the couch.

"Sorry I didn't call first," Haley apologized, "I just needed to talk to someone, and with Nathan not here…"

"I'm happy to help Tutor Mom," Brooke replied, "What's up?"

"Last night, before the party, Chris showed up at the café while I was there with Nathan and Jamie," Haley began.

"WHAT?" Brooke exclaimed, "What did you do?"

"Deb took Jamie and left," Haley continued, "But I froze. I couldn't say anything. You know that I've rehearsed what I would say to Chris for the past five years, but in that moment, nothing came out. Nathan railed on him, would've kicked the crap out of him if I wouldn't have been there. And then, when Chris finally decides to leave, he has the audacity to say that he made a cute kid."

"You're joking," Brooke said, and Haley shook her head, "What an ass!"

"Oh, that's not it," Haley replied, "Then, he shows up at the studio today while I'm working with Mia, and tries to defend himself, saying that acknowledging Jamie as his would've changed his life and his career, and that he wasn't daddy material."

"Well you can't argue with that last part," Brooke said amused, "Haley, I know you're fired up about this, but that's what he wants. He pushes people's buttons just to get a reaction, you know that. Your best bet is to ignore him. He's like…a bear, you know? If you play dead long enough, he'll leave you alone."

Before Haley could respond to Brooke's terrible comparison, cries from the baby monitor could be heard.

"Can I get him?" Haley asked, standing up, "Jamie's with Mouth and Skills and I could use some snuggles right about now, after the day I've had."

"He's all yours," Brooke sighed, laying down on the couch, "He kept us up all night. Poor Luke, he had to get up early to go help Keith on some project. Sometimes I just wish Liam had an off switch, just for like fifteen minutes, you know?"

"Well, now he does," Haley replied, before heading upstairs, "Get some sleep. I'll watch him."

* * *

After spending some time with baby Liam and letting Brooke get some sleep, Haley decided to take Jamie for ice cream in Winnabow, where they'd gone with Nathan after the basketball camp.

As the two sat on the same bench as the last time, Haley snapped a picture of them on her phone, sending it to Nathan. He hadn't been able to call when he landed, but he sent a text letting her know that he was back in Charlotte.

 _ **Wish you were here. We miss you 3**_

"Mama," Jamie said, as Haley sent the text, "Who was that man last night at the café?"

Haley sighed. She knew that he would ask. He was a curious little boy, too smart for his own good.

"He was just someone that mommy knew a long time ago," Haley answered.

"I heard Daddy yelling at him," Jamie replied.

"He's not a very nice person, sweetie," Haley tried to explain, "Daddy was just asking him to leave, that's all."

"I miss him when he's gone," Jamie frowned, looking down.

"I know baby, I miss him too," Haley said, "But we're going to see him on Friday at the game. We just have to get through this week. Do you think we can do that?"

"Yeah mama," Jamie replied, smiling up at her, "We just have to be brave."

Haley smiled as her phone vibrated, indicating a text message.

 _ **I love you. Both of you. I'll see you soon.**_

* * *

She and Jamie watched the basketball game on Monday with the whole gang at Brooke and Lucas' house. Nathan had been complaining for the last month that while the house they were living in had been the perfect size for her and Jamie, it was a tight squeeze for the three of them. She knew he was right. They'd gone to look at a few houses here and there when he was home, but hadn't found quite the right one yet.

The Bobcats won, and Nathan scored 35 points. As she made her way home and got Jamie to bed, she anticipated a phone call from him. He always called after the game. She stayed up till 2 in the morning. The call never came.

She'd hoped that he'd just fallen asleep, but in the back of her mind, she had a feeling he was out partying with Clay and the guys from the team. She didn't want to be that wife, the one who nagged her husband about not calling her and telling her where he was, but she worried.

She hardly slept at all, managing to get Jamie to school on time and make it to the café for her shift, staying awake thanks to the magic of coffee. As the morning breakfast rush began, her phone began ringing in her pocket. Checking the caller ID, she saw Nathan's name.

"Hello," she answered, trying not to sound bitter and upset like she slightly was.

"Hey babe," she heard Nathan say, almost at a whisper.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, "Look, I'm sorry I didn't call last night. I got caught up with the guys. We were at this party at the hotel, well, we still kinda are. That's why I'm whispering. All the guys are passed out. Anyway, I'm sorry."

Haley sighed, and even though she didn't like the thought of him getting drunk and partying with a bunch of fans and cheerleaders, she knew she had to forgive him, "It's okay. I was just worried when I didn't hear from you. You played great."

"Thanks Hales," Nathan sighed, "So, has Chris left town yet?"

Haley bit her lip, not sure if she should tell Nathan about her run-in with Chris at the studio, "Not yet, but I haven't seen him so, so far, so good."

Haley heard voices and rustling in the background, before Nathan said, "Hales, I'm sorry. I've gotta go sober these guys up before practice. But I'll try to call you tonight when we get to Utah, ok?"

"Okay," Haley answered, slightly disappointed at the short length of their conversation, "I love you."

"Love you too, bye," and just like that, he was gone.

* * *

 **Charlotte, NC**

Dan Scott sat in his office, thinking. He wanted a relationship with his son, but his supposed "daughter-in-law" and ex-wife stood in the way of that. He had to do something, and now, he knew exactly what he had to do.

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I should have the next one up soon!**

 **Please review or PM me and let me know what YOU would like to see happen in this story! I love ideas and suggestions!**


	17. Chapter 17

Haley's album was at #3 on the charts, and she was busier than ever. Between the café, Jamie, and helping at Red Bedroom, her plate was extremely full. And now, with Peyton on doctor-mandated bedrest, Haley was struggling to do it all.

* * *

 _ **Two days earlier…**_

 _Haley was at the café, working with Deb. Jamie sat at the counter, working on drawing a family picture for school._

" _And he stayed in that tree house for two days without coming down," Deb laughed._

" _Sounds like Nathan," Haley replied, "Stubborn as ever."_

 _Their laughter was interrupted by the phone ringing. Haley answered it._

" _Karen's Café," she said, before her expression changed, "Hey Peyton. What's going on?"_

 _Haley listened for a few moments, "Okay, I'll be right there."_

" _What's going on?" Deb asked, wiping her hands on her apron._

" _Peyton needs to talk to me," Haley replied, "She didn't say why, just that it was important."_

" _Of course, go," Deb nodded, "I can handle things here."_

 _Haley kissed Jamie's forehead before driving to Peyton and Jake's house._

 _Upon arriving, she found Jake, Peyton, and Brooke in the living room, before Peyton broke the news._

" _I thought that I should tell you guys in person," Peyton said, sitting on the couch, looking a little pale._

 _Jake gulped, "They say it's called placenta previa."_

" _What is that? What does it mean?" Haley asked, concerned for her friend._

" _It means that she runs the risk of hemorrhaging during pregnancy or during delivery," Jake explained, "We found out at the first doctor's appointment. They said this could happen."_

" _But you're going to be okay," Haley questioned, "You and the baby, right?"_

" _If everything goes perfectly, then yes," Peyton replied, "You'll have a perfectly healthy niece."_

" _I knew it," Haley smiled, trying to be happy for her, while still struggling with this new revelation._

" _And if it doesn't?" Brooke asked, her arms crossed as she looked to her best friend._

" _Well, then we could lose her, Haley," Jake stammered, "Her and the baby."_

 **END FLASHBACK**

Although Haley and Brooke were initially upset that Peyton hadn't told them about the complications with her pregnancy, they couldn't stay mad at her. The doctor had put her on immediate bedrest. At just 20 weeks along, she was only halfway through her pregnancy. At this point, bedrest was what was keeping this baby safe inside her, for now.

* * *

It was Thursday afternoon. Nathan would be home tomorrow for the game, and after all that had happened in the past few days, she really couldn't wait to see him. In the past few months, it seemed like she was being pulled in a thousand different directions.

Peyton had said that she would call Sire Records, the parent label, and find somewhere else for Chris to record. Knowing that although having him here would be hard for her, Haley also knew that Red Bedroom really needed the exposure of having 3 great artists. She told Peyton that she would swallow her pride and help him.

So here she was, sitting outside the recording booth as Chris sang inside. She had to admit. Although she didn't respect him as a person, she had to admit, he was a really talented musician. Surprisingly, they'd been able to get along so far. No major tiffs.

Her phone brought her out of her head, ringing for what seemed like the twentieth time that day. She quickly turned down the sound.

"Hello," she sighed, rubbing her temple.

"Is this Haley James Scott?" the voice on the other end of the phone asked.

"Yes this is she," Haley answered, sitting up now in her chair.

"My name is Officer Adams, with the Tree Hill Police Department. There was an accident, and your son gave me your phone number," the man explained.

Deb had picked Jamie up from school and taken him back to her house for a few hours, to let Haley get some work done at the studio.

"Oh my god, Jamie," Haley stammered, "Is he alright?"

"He's a little shaken up," the officer stated, "Wouldn't speak, just gave me your number. Your mother-in-law, Deb, was taken to the hospital by ambulance. I can't say anything else over the phone, but you should get to the hospital as soon as possible."

* * *

Haley rushed to the emergency room, seeing Jamie sitting in a chair with a young, dark haired police officer. When he saw her, he ran to her, jumping into her arms.

"Oh baby, I'm so glad you're okay," Haley sighed, stroking his hair, clutching him tightly.

"Mrs. Scott, we have a few questions for you, if that's alright," Officer Adams asked, "Officer Farrell can stay with Jamie."

Haley walked to a corner of the E.R. with Officer Adams, worried about Deb.

"What happened?" Haley questioned, "You said it was an overdose? That's not right. Deb's been sober for three years, she wouldn't…"

"Jamie was the one who called 911," Officer Adams explained, "When we arrived on the scene, Deb was on the kitchen floor, an empty wine bottle and a half empty bottle of prescription pills next to her. She was passed out."

"Is she okay?" Haley managed to say.

"They pumped her stomach, almost lost her. She's sedated now," Officer Adams replied, "Were you aware that she'd started drinking again?"

"No," Haley answered, "There wasn't any alcohol in the house. I've been there almost every day."

"I'm sorry Mrs. Scott," Officer Adams looked at her, a glum expression on his face, "I'll be in touch, okay?"

* * *

Nathan was laying in his bed in the hotel room in Utah, shooting a basketball up in the air and catching it. Their plane left in the morning, and it would be good to get home again.

His phone rang, and when he saw it was Haley, he had a smile on his face.

"Hey baby, I was just thinking about you," he answered.

"Nath, Nathan," Haley stammered, trying so hard not to cry, "Something's happened."

"Are you okay?" Nathan sat up, concerned now.

"It's not me, it's your mom," Haley replied, "She's in the hospital. Can you get home?"

"I'll be there as soon as I can," Nathan quickly said, immediately starting to pack after he'd hung up the phone.

He was back in Tree Hill in a few hours, hurrying into the hospital.

"What the hell happened?" Nathan asked Haley, wrapping his arms around her outside Deb's hospital room.

"All I know is what the officer told me," Haley said, "Jamie won't say anything. He's really shaken up."

"I should've known this would happen," Nathan sighed, "I knew it was all too good to be true."

"Nathan, none of this makes sense," Haley insisted, "I've been with her every day. If she was falling off the wagon, I would know."

"I need to talk to her," Nathan said, pushing past Haley and going into his mom's room.

She sat in the bed, the doctor checking her vitals.

"Nathan," Deb weakly said.

"How is she?" he asked the doctor, ignoring his mother.

"She had some blunt force trauma to the back of her head, probably from the fall, so she has a slight concussion and she's experiencing some memory loss," the doctor explained, "But she's very lucky."

He left the room, leaving Nathan, Haley and Deb alone.

"What were you thinking?" Nathan growled, "Jamie was with you, and that's when you decide to get drunk and screw yourself up?"

"I didn't do this Nathan," Deb insisted, trying to sit up, "Jamie and I were playing in the backyard. I came in to get us a drink. I was standing by the fridge, and the next thing I remember, I'm waking up in the ambulance."

"It's one thing to do this to me," Nathan argued, "I'm used to you disappointing me. But doing this to Jamie, and to Haley? Tell the truth, mom, God!"

"Nathan!" Haley exclaimed, stepping to Deb's bedside, taking her hand, "If she says she didn't do anything, I believe her."

"Well then what do you think happened?" Nathan questioned, "Jamie sure as hell didn't feed her the pills, now did he?"

"Nathan, you need to calm down," Haley warned.

Nathan ran his hands through his hair, hitting the wall, leaving a small dent, before storming out of the room, "Dammit mom."

"Haley, I'm sorry," Deb whispered, her hand shaking, as Haley squeezed it, "If I did this…"

"Deb, you didn't" Haley assured her.

"Then how did I end up here?" Deb sighed, turning her head away from Haley.

"I don't know," Haley replied, "But I know someone who does."

* * *

Haley drove straight home, noticing Nathan wasn't there when she pulled him. She hadn't expected him to be after his outburst at the hospital. Brooke had come to pick up Jamie from the hospital, and she sat inside with him, a Disney movie playing on the TV. Brooke hugged Jamie and Haley before leaving.

"Hey Jimmy Jam," Haley smiled, sitting next to him on the couch.

"Is Gramma Deb okay?" Jamie asked, looking up at her.

"She's still at the hospital," Haley replied, "But she's going to be just fine. Do you want to talk about what happened today?"

Jamie's eyes widened, and he shook his head, looking down into his lap.

"Sweetie, it's really important that you tell the truth," Haley said, "We need to know what happened to Gramma Deb."

"He said if I told, I'd get in trouble," Jamie said, almost at a whisper.

"Who said that Jamie?" Haley asked, "You won't get in trouble, I promise."

Jamie looked at his mom, before saying, "Gramma had gone in to get us some drinks, but she didn't come back. So I went into the kitchen, and saw a man making Gramma drink some stuff. He kept telling her to swallow, but her eyes weren't open very wide. He saw me, and set the bottle down. That's when he told me that if I told anyone, I would get in trouble."

"Do you know who it was baby?" Haley asked, holding his hand.

"Gramma was kind of awake when the man was leaving. She said his name was Dan," Jamie replied, looking up at Haley.

Haley felt like her heart stopped for a second as Jamie said that name.

"Thank you for telling me sweetheart," Haley managed to force a small smile, "Now go wash up for dinner, okay?"

"Mama, is daddy home yet?" Jamie asked.

Haley sighed, "Not yet sweetie. But he will be soon."

As Jamie ran to go wash his hands, Haley ran hers through her hair, "I hope."

* * *

"Nathan, it's me…again," Haley said, getting Nathan's voicemail for the fifth time, "I'm worried about you. Just, please call me, so I know you're okay. I love you."

It was two a.m. Nathan hadn't come home after storming out of the hospital. Haley was in bed, Jamie curled up next to her. He'd been too scared to sleep in his own room, understandable, after what he'd been through that day.

She'd told the police what Jamie had told her, and they said they would look into it. Deb's home was being searched by a crime scene unit.

She put her arms around her son, and willed herself to fall asleep, trying to forget the events of the past few days.

The next morning, though, Nathan still wasn't home. She had only one more person she could call.

"Hello?" the person on the other end of the phone answered.

"Hey Mel," Haley said, calling the one person who might actually know where her husband was, "It's Haley."

"Hey Haley," Mel replied, "I had a feeling you'd be calling. Don't worry, he's here. I would've called when he got here last night, but it was late. I didn't want to wake you and Jamie."

"Oh thank God," Haley sighed with relief, "I've been worried sick since he didn't come home last night. He hasn't' been answering my calls or texts. Did he tell you what happened?"

"No," Mel replied, looking at Nathan, who was watching ESPN with her husband, from where she stood in the kitchen, "He hasn't talked much since he got here."

"Can I talk to him?" Haley asked, hoping he had cooled down and was ready to talk. She knew that he would have to leave for morning shoot around soon, but she wanted to clear things up.

"Hang on," Mel replied, setting the phone down on the kitchen counter and walking into the living room, standing right in front of the television to block the guys' view, "There's someone's worried wife on the phone."

Nathan leaned back against the couch, crossing his arms, "I can't talk to her right now, Mel."

"Look, Nate, I don't know what happened," Mel began, "And I know it's none of my business but…"

"You're right, it is none of your business," Nathan snapped, standing up and gathering his things, before heading for the door, "Nino, I'll see you on the court."

"Did he tell you anything?" Mel asked, mostly in desperation.

"Sorry babe," Nino replied, standing up to hug his wife, "All I know is that he was pissed off at something, or someone."

Mel made the short walk back to the kitchen, wishing it took longer when she picked up her phone, "I'm sorry, Haley. I told him you were on the phone and he got mad and left."

"Thanks for trying Mel," Haley answered, "And thank you for letting him stay there."

* * *

As Nathan warmed up on the court for the game that night against Toronto, he found himself looking to where Haley and Jamie always sat in the stands. With 20 minutes left until tip-off, Mel and one of the other wives were the only ones sitting there. He was kicking himself for acting the way that he did, running off, and ignoring Haley's calls. But he had forgiven his mom and let her back into his life. He'd let her spend time with his wife and his son. And now, she had betrayed his trust and put his son in potential danger. He couldn't believe that after all of that, Haley would believe her story.

Haley, on the other hand, was at home, with Deb and Jamie. She'd been released a few hours before, and since her home was still being processed by CSU, Haley had offered to let her stay with them.

"Shouldn't you be in Charlotte by now?" Deb asked, as Haley stirred a pot on the stove.

"I don't think Nathan would want me there right now," Haley replied, "Besides, you just got home from the hospital, and I know you need some real food, not that hospital crap."

"Haley," Deb began, leaning against the counter, "I want to thank you for everything that you've done for me. I know you played a big part in Nathan letting me back into his life, and you don't know how much that has meant to me."

"Deb, it's going to be okay," Haley tried to reassure her, looking into the living room, making sure Jamie was watching the Bobcats game, which had just started, "Jamie saw what happened, Deb. He told me that Dan attacked you, and forced the pills and wine down your throat."

Deb's eyes widened, "Are you sure?"

"He described him, Deb, and he said that you said his name before you passed out," Haley explained.

"I can't believe that…" Deb began, before changing her mind, "Actually, I can believe that he would do this. The man is diabolical."

"I wanted to tell Nathan," said Haley, "But he didn't exactly give me the chance."

"Haley, if my staying here is a problem, I'm sure Karen and Keith would be fine with me…" Deb started to say.

"Nonsense, Deb," Haley interrupted, "You're family. Nathan will come around. Now, let's eat before it gets cold."

* * *

Nathan walked out of the locker room after the game, tie hanging loosely around his neck. Everyone had already left, gone home to be with their families for the weekend. The Bobcats had almost lost the game, no thanks to Nathan. He'd had five turnovers and had missed half the shots he'd taken. Coach Irons had benched him for the last quarter, telling him to pull his head out of his ass.

He arrived at home late that night, and just as he reached to open the door, it opened for him.

Haley stood on the other side, looking as upset as he'd expected. She stepped out onto the porch, shutting the door behind her.

"Nice to finally see you," she stated, folding her arms and shivering slightly in the cold November air, "You played like crap."

"Yeah I did."

Despite Haley's protests, Nathan offered her his suit jacket, but she didn't let him put it on her.

"I'm sorry I didn't come home," Nathan apologized, "And I'm sorry I didn't answer your calls. I was just so angry. I didn't want to blow up on you."

"So you just disappear?" Haley retorted, "Nathan, you cannot just run away when you're angry. We have to talk about things. You have to talk to me."

Nathan furrowed his brow at how quietly she was speaking, knowing that Jamie's room was out of earshot of their conversation.

Haley, noticing his confusion at the volume of her voice, added, "Your mom is on the couch."

"You let her in the house?" Nathan exploded, doing what he'd just said he didn't want to do.

"Nathan, keep your voice down!" Haley pleaded, "She's our family and she just got released from the hospital. You don't know all that's happened."

"I don't have to know, Haley," Nathan replied, "All I need to know is she put our son in danger. I can't believe I let myself think that she'd changed."

"It was Dan, Nathan," Haley sighed.

The mention of his father's name caused Nathan to finally look at her, really look at her, "What?"

"Jamie saw the whole thing," Haley continued, "We've talked to the police, and they're investigating. That's why Deb is staying here. Her house is a crime scene."

Nathan was in shock, trying to wrap his head around the fact that his father attacked his mother.

"Haley, I'm sorry, I…" Nathan stammered, feeling like a complete idiot.

Haley pulled his suit jacket tighter around her small frame, "Nathan, I know you're sorry. But I can't deal with this all by myself. I need to know that you aren't going to run every time things get hard. We're married, and we have to face things together."

"Haley, it kills me to do this to you," Nathan pleaded, "But I know the pain that I've felt because of my mom. And I wanted to do everything in my power to not let Jamie have to feel that, ever. So when I found out that he'd been with her when this happened, it just took me back to when I saw her get drunk and high when I was a kid."

Haley finally gave into her emotions, stepping forward and wrapping her arms around her husband's neck, clinging tightly to him. He wrapped his arms around her, as well, and they stood like that for what seemed like hours, but was only minutes.

"I love you," Nathan whispered, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"I love you too," Haley replied.

* * *

Sunday came too quickly. Nathan would have to head back to Charlotte, and then back on the road for away games for the next two weeks. He was grateful that he was able to talk to his mom, the morning after he came home.

 **FLASHBACK**

" _Haley told me what happened," Nathan began, as he and his mom sat out on the front porch. Haley and Jamie were inside, making cookies, "Mom, I'm really sorry for how I acted at the hospital."_

" _You had every right to be upset, Nathan," Deb replied, "You were protecting your family."_

" _You're my family too, Mom," Nathan continued, "And I should have listened to you, heard you out. But I want you to know that I believe you. I know that Dan is capable of what he did, and I want to see him pay."_

" _Well, we'll see about that," Deb answered, "But I'm just glad that you came home. I know Haley and Jamie were worried."_

" _I messed up there too," Nathan sighed, running his hand through his hair, "I just get so angry, and I walk away. I don't want to hurt them, Mom."_

" _Nathan, you didn't exactly have the best example of a stable home life," Deb admitted, "But you are a good man. And a good husband. And a good father. I know that you'll do the right thing. You just have to remember what you learned in your anger management. I know that that's helped me."_

" _Thank you, Mom, for forgiving me," Nathan said, "And for coming back."_

 _The two shared a hug, as Haley peeked through the curtains, smiling to herself._

 **END FLASHBACK**

* * *

"So, what do you have planned for the week?" Nathan asked, as he and Haley sat on the couch, his arm around her.

"Spending lots of time at the studio and the café," Haley replied, "Business as usual."

She'd told Nathan about Peyton's condition, and having to spend more time at the studio, but she hadn't mentioned working with Chris. He would only be in town for one more week, and then they would be rid of him, for good. She didn't want to upset him any further.

"You'll call me and let me know what happens with the investigation, right?" Nathan questioned.

Haley had managed to keep him from hunting down Dan himself, urging him to let the police handle it.

"The detectives said they would call when they knew something," Haley nodded, "But I'll probably call them tomorrow, just to check in."

Nathan, Haley, and Deb were all anxious to hear if the police had found any evidence to suggest that Dan had been in Deb's house: fingerprints, DNA, an outside witness, anything. However, they all knew that Dan was smart, and this made them all the more nervous that he was able to cover his tracks.

* * *

 **Sorry if this chapter moved rather quickly, but I had a lot of plot points that needed to be addressed in order to move this story along!**

 **Hope you all enjoyed this chapter!**

 **Please review or PM me and let me know what YOU would like to see happen in this story! I love ideas and suggestions!**


	18. Chapter 18

**SO sorry for the length of time between updates! School has been kicking my butt, and since I work in retail and it's getting to be the holiday season, I've been working like crazy as well! FORGIVE ME!**

 **Here's a quick update! Sorry for the shortness of this chapter, but it was a necessary chapter to move the story along. A longer chapter 19 will be posted ASAP!**

 **Thanks for sticking with me, loyal readers!**

* * *

"So this new song of yours," Haley began, as she sat outside the recording booth next to Chris, "It's different than your usual stuff."

"Yeah," Chris sighed, "Chris Kel…I mean, I… just wanted to get rid of all the production and show and just go back to how things started. Just me and a guitar, you know?"

"Yeah, I remember," Haley replied, "It's a good song, Chris, really."

"Thank you for helping me Haley," Chris said sincerely, "You could've sent me packing the second I got here, but you didn't."

Haley twisted her wedding ring around on her finger. It had become a habit of hers, one that she did when she nervous.

"Look, I respect you as an artist Chris," Haley sighed, "But I'm only hear because of the contract that Peyton and I signed. Me being here in no way excuses what you did to me. Is that clear?"

"Crystal," Chris answered, "Haley, I want you to know that I meant what I said earlier. I am sorry, for everything. And I really am grateful that you're working with me. We make a good team."

Haley narrowed her eyes at him, trying to figure out if he was just playing her, or if he was actually sorry.

"I've spent five years hating you," Haley stated, "And it's been exhausting. So I'm not going to do it anymore. It doesn't mean I forgive you or that what you did was okay, because I don't and it wasn't. But I don't want us tiptoeing around each other when we're supposed to be getting work done."

Haley finished her rant, running her hand through her hair. She looked over to one of the shelves on the wall. It held a photo of Peyton and Jake, and a newly added photo of Nathan, Haley, and Jamie from after one of Nathan's games. Chris noticed her gaze and what she was looking at.

"I'm really glad that you're happy," he said, smiling, "You deserve it. All of you."

"Thanks Chris," Haley answered, trying to stifle a small smile, but failing miserably "But we should really get back to work."

"Maybe you and I could jam out on this next one?" Chris suggested, pulling up his guitar, beginning to strum a familiar tune for the two of them, "Remember this?"

"How could I forget?" Haley laughed, "It got us a standing ovation every time."

* * *

Nathan walked into TRIC, headed for Red Bedroom, a bouquet of purple flowers in his hands. He had 24 hours to be at home before he had to head back to Charlotte. Most of the guys on the team were staying there, going out drinking, but he'd decided to surprise Haley and Jamie, not telling them that he was coming. He'd called his mom on the drive, finding out that Haley was at the studio for the day. He hoped Mia wouldn't mind her recording session being interrupted.

As he approached Red Bedroom, he could hear voices and laughter, but he grew concerned when one of them sounded distinctly male.

He entered the doorway of the booth and was shocked at what he saw. Haley, singing with Chris.

He tried to hold back the anger that was boiling inside him at the sight of this prick, so he simply knocked on the door, "Special delivery."

Haley turned at the sound of Nathan's voice, "Nathan!"

She jumped into his arms, "What are you doing here?"

"Coach gave us 24 hours off," Nathan smiled, "Thought I'd come see you and the boy."

"Hey Nate!" Chris waved, propping his feet up on the sound board.

Nathan sighed, wrapping his arm tightly around Haley's waist, "What is he doing here?"

"I'm working with him," Haley responded, looking up to catch Nathan's gaze, "Not by choice, I can promise you that. Peyton signed a contract, and since she can't be here, it's up to me."

"Thought I told you to stay the hell away from my family?" Nathan spewed, pulling Haley closer to him.

"Look Nate, I'm just here to finish up my album," Chris raised his hands in surrender, "After that, I'm gone. For good, I swear."

Taking a deep breath, Nathan said, "You're lucky I'm in a good mood today, Keller."

Haley looked up at Nathan, proud of how he handled the situation, but by the way he was looking at her, she could tell he was upset.

"Chris, I'll see you tomorrow," Haley stated, as she and Nathan left the studio.

* * *

"So why didn't you tell me you were working with Chris again?" Nathan asked, as they drove home.

Haley sighed, "I didn't want you to be upset. I didn't have a choice in the matter, Nathan. He's here for a few more days, and then he's going back to LA."

"You still should've told me," Nathan gruffed, gripping the steering wheel tighter, "I thought we said no more secrets."

"I'm sorry for not telling you, but I was doing this for Peyton," Haley replied, trying to make him understand, "And I know you don't like Chris and neither do I, but I'm tired of hating him. I've held this grudge for too long. It's time I let it go, and I want you to let it go too."

"After what he did to you, and to Jamie? You expect me to let him off and be nice to the guy?" Nathan questioned.

"No, of course not," Haley said, "But I think we just need to move on. Chris is in the past. I want to focus on now: you and me and Jamie and our life. Can you please do that for me?"

"I'm sorry, Hales," Nathan shook his head, as they pulled onto their street, "It's just..having him here. I didn't want him to try and see Jamie or something. I'm gone, a lot, and I know that sucks, but I didn't want him to take advantage of that."

"Nathan, you are Jamie's father, in every sense of the word," Haley reassured him, reaching to take one of his hands from the steering wheel into both of hers, "He may have Chris' DNA, unfortunately, but DNA doesn't make a family. Love does. And I know how much you love Jamie. Chris wants nothing to do with him. He told me. We are safe, I promise you."

* * *

As they got closer to their home, Haley noticed the police car sitting outside. This got both of them nervous, and they hurried inside, to find Deb and two police officers in the living room.

"What's going on?" Nathan questioned, seeing his mother looking visibly upset.

"They came to update us on the case," Deb stammered, "Go ahead officers. Tell them what you told me."

Officer Adams, who had been the one who'd called Haley and stayed with Jamie at the hospital, gulped, before speaking, "We came to inform Ms. Lee and the two of you that our CSU team finished processing the crime scene. Unfortunately, there's no physical evidence placing Dan Scott at the scene."

"But Jamie said he saw him there," Haley replied, "And the neighbors must have seen something."

"We interviewed all the neighbors," the other officer said, "None of them saw anyone enter the home, except Ms. Lee and your son."

"Dan did it," Nathan said, "Jamie is a witness. That has to count for something, right? Have you arrested Dan yet?"

"Unfortunately Mr. Scott," Officer Adams began, "There is insufficient evidence linking Dan Scott to the crime. Without a corroborating witness, there's nothing we can do."

"But Jamie," Haley started, before the other officer cut in.

"The District Attorney doesn't believe that a five year old witness is credible," he said, "Or fit to stand trial for that matter."

"So he gets away with it," Nathan stated, sounding calm, but Haley knew better.

"Mr. and Mrs. Scott, if I could talk to you in the kitchen for a moment," Officer Adams said, gesturing towards the kitchen.

"No," Haley shook her head, "Anything you want to say, you can say in front of all of us."

The two officers looked at each other, before Officer Adams spoke up again, "The sheriff wants to know if you'd like to press charges."

"Against Dan?" Haley asked, confused.

"Against Ms. Lee," the other officer clarified, "The sheriff believes that she put your son in imminent danger, but the final call is up to you."

"Are you insane?" Haley narrowed her eyes at the police, "You and I both know that Dan Scott did this. And he's going to get away with it, which is even worse. Why, in God's name, do you think we would want to send Deb to prison for something she didn't do?"

"I'm sorry, for all of this," Officer Adams said sincerely, "I wish there was something I could do, but my hands are tied. The sheriff is going to close the case then, today. It'll be ruled an accident."

* * *

"I'm sorry Mom," Nathan hugged Deb, who was crying.

"Deb, we'll figure it out," Haley assured her.

"I'm sorry I had to put you all through this," Deb sobbed.

"It isn't you, Mom," Nathan replied, "It's Dan. I didn't think he would go to this extreme, but I should have known better."

Deb straightened up, wiping the tears from her eyes, "You're right. I can't let him get to me. I can't let him win."

She looked at the clock on the wall, "Oh, I have to get to the café."

"Deb, I'm sure Karen could cover for you," Haley said, as Nathan stood next to her, his arm around her waist, "Maybe you should stay in today."

"I can't do that, Haley," Deb shook her head, "If I do that, Dan wins. He doesn't get to control me anymore. I'd rather just forget that this all happened, move past it, you know?"

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed this chapter!**

 **Please review or PM me and let me know what YOU would like to see happen in this story! I love ideas and suggestions!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Charlotte, NC**

"I'm sorry Dan, I couldn't do it," Chris said, sitting across from Dan Scott in his office, "Look, I thought I could, but they're good people. And despite the fact that Jamie has my DNA, Nathan is his dad. I couldn't break up that family, no matter how much you wanted me to."

"We had a deal," Dan growled, looking at the cocky musician in front of him.

"And I don't want any part of it," Chris replied, tossing a wad of money across the desk, "There's your money, all of it."

"Get out Keller, before I do something I may or may not regret," Dan glared, "You're of no use to me anymore."

Chris got up, but as he got to the door, he turned around, "You know, Dan, I saw firsthand how much Jamie loves Nathan, how great of a father he is to him. But I honestly have no idea where he learned it from. If you want to know why you don't have a relationship with your son, you should take a hard look in the mirror."

* * *

It had been a little over a month since Chris had left Tree Hill, and since the revelation about the case against Dan. Per Deb's request, no one had mentioned the attack or Dan.

Haley was thankful that Nathan's busy schedule kept him from confronting Dan himself. She knew that Dan attacking Deb had really hurt Nathan, almost pushing him to his breaking point. She could see how hard it was for him to sit back and do nothing, when his most natural response was to protect the people that he loved, to fight for them.

* * *

Haley sat at the counter at the café, looking out at everyone who was sitting, talking and laughing. The café was hosting Thanksgiving dinner for the Scott families and all their friends. It had become a tradition, one that Deb and Nathan would be a part of for the first time.

She was soon joined by Lucas, "Hey Hales. Great turn out, huh?"

"Seems like we gain a few more every year," Haley smiled, seeing Nathan holding Liam, as Deb fawned over him as well.

"It's been a crazy year," Lucas sighed, "But we made it. Together."

Haley sighed as well, leaning against Lucas' side, "Remember the time we shared the wishbone, when we were kids?"

Lucas smiled, "Yeah, you bugged my mom all day about saving the wishbone for us. And then I ended up getting the bigger half."

"But you let me make the wish," Haley continued, "You know, that day, I wished that we would always find the good in our lives. I'm pretty sure that can come true whenever we want it to. So, I'm gonna make today about the good, because there's so much of it. We just have to see it."

Lucas pulled her in for a hug, "And that is why you are my best friend."

"Woah, don't you have your own wife?" Nathan laughed as he walked over, leaving the baby with Deb, "I think everyone's ready to eat."

* * *

"Alright, alright, settle down everyone," Haley laughed, as she stood at the head of all of the tables that had been pushed together so everyone could fit, Nathan next to her.

"Now, as per tradition, before we eat, we go around the room and say what we're thankful for," Haley explained, "I'll start….um, I'm really grateful to be surrounded by such amazing friends and family, and I'm really glad that we gained a few new family members this year."

Nathan wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her close, "I'm grateful for new beginnings and second chances," he said, as he smiled at Haley, and then his mom.

Everyone continued to say what they were thankful for, and then it was Jamie's turn.

"So, I'm thankful that I got a dad and a grandma this year," Jamie smiled, "Oh, and a new baby cousin too!"

Everyone smiled, as the turn came next to a noticeably pregnant Peyton, "I have so much to be thankful for this year. I'm thankful for my amazing fiancé, for putting up with my crazy pregnant self. And for all of you, for being there for us, all three of us. But I think I'm most grateful that I can get out of the house and eat all of this amazing food that Karen and Haley made, because this baby is hungry!"

This made everyone laugh, as Nathan and Haley took their seats at the table, and Keith and Lucas began to carve the turkeys.

* * *

"It was a good day," Haley smiled, as she draped her arm across Nathan's bare chest. The two lay in bed after Thanksgiving dinner, exhausted from the day's events.

"Best Thanksgiving ever," Nathan replied, placing a kiss to her temple.

Haley sighed, snuggling closer to him, "Six months ago, when you came back to Tree Hill, did you ever think that you'd be married with a five year old by Thanksgiving?"

Nathan laughed, "Of course I did."

"Whatever," Haley rolled her eyes, "I couldn't stand you, and you were a jackass who thought he could do no wrong."

"For me, it was love at first sight," Nathan continued, "I mean, how could it not be? Remember that leather mini skirt you were wearing the first time we met, at the café?"

* * *

 **Later…December 23** **rd**

Now, Christmas Day was fast approaching.

Haley, Jamie, and Deb sat in Time Warner Cable Arena, watching Nathan and the Bobcats play the Bulls, their last game before their 2 day Christmas break. Though Haley had originally been a bit upset at the lack of time off Nathan would have, she'd known what she was getting into. It was just hard for her not to have him around during the holidays. She and Jamie had their traditions, and they'd been excited to share them with Nathan this year.

Unfortunately, games, practices, and special appearances had interfered with a lot of planned trips home. The month of December had Nathan home in Tree Hill a total of four days out of the past 23, enough time to pick out a Christmas tree, decorate it, and make Christmas cookies, Haley and Jamie's favorite things to do during the holidays.

* * *

As halftime of the game arrived, the Bobcats were up by ten.

"So, how are your first BWC holidays?" Mel asked, as the three women sat with Jamie, watching a dance group perform.

Haley sighed, "I should've known…should've expected that he be gone this much. But it's still hard. The holidays for me have always been about family, and not having him around…it's worse on Jamie though. Not having a father for so long, and then when he does get one, he's not there all the time."

Mel nodded, "I know what you're going through Haley. Nino and I may not have any children but him being gone is hard on me. It always has been. We've been in the NBA for five years. I remember that first Christmas. He had to leave right after we opened presents that morning. I was upset and lonely, but after a while, you come to appreciate the time you do have together and make the most of it."

"Thanks Mel," Haley smiled, "I really can't thank you enough for being such a great friend and support. I don't know how I would've dealt with all of this BWC stuff without you."

"Mama, can I get some popcorn?" Jamie asked, tugging on the sleeve of Haley's sweater, "Please, please?"

Haley looked at her young son, "I don't know sweetie. You've already eaten dinner and the line is probably going to be really long. You don't want to miss the start of the second half, do you?"

Jamie quizzically looked up, stroking his chin with his thumb and index finger. It was a new thing that he'd started to do, and Haley couldn't help but smile.

"I'll take him Haley," Deb popped in, grabbing her purse, "Besides, it's a grandma's job to spoil her grandson, isn't it Jamie?"

Jamie nodded, eyes wide as he turned to look at his mother.

"Alright, go ahead," Haley relented, laughing, "But no candy, okay?"

* * *

As Mel and Haley watched Jamie and Deb walk down the stairs to the snack bar, Haley heard Mel sigh.

"You are really lucky, you know?" she said, "Jamie is…he's adorable and he's so smart."

"Yeah, he's definitely a handful," Haley laughed, "But I couldn't imagine my life without him."

"I always wanted a houseful of kids," Mel replied, "I have five brothers and sisters, so I'm used to a house full of noise, you know?"

"Yeah, I have 6 older siblings," Haley said, "I know the feeling."

"Nino and I got married when we were 18…high school sweethearts," Mel began, "We weren't trying to get pregnant right away, but we weren't preventing it either. And now, we've been trying for nine years."

"Mel, I'm sorry," Haley said sincerely, "I didn't know."

"No, it's not like it's public knowledge or anything," Mel continued, "We've seen dozens of doctors, but they all say that nothing is wrong, that it will happen when it happens. But we've just been waiting for such a long time…I'm afraid it's not going to happen for us."

At this point, both women now had tears in their eyes, as Haley took Mel's hand, "Everything is going to work out, Mel. I know it."

"Mama!" Jamie exclaimed, as he ran up the stairs, barreling towards her.

Haley and Mel quickly wiped the tears from their eyes as the smiling boy approached them.

"You made it just in time Jimmy Jam," Haley stated, pointing towards the court, where the teams had come out and started warming up, "They're just about to start."

"Daddy's doing good, isn't he Mama?" Jamie smiled, climbing up onto the seat next to her.

Haley looked out onto the court, as her husband shot a 3-pointer, and made it. His eyes caught hers, which made them both smile.

* * *

"There he is!" Jamie exclaimed, running across the court.

Nathan smiled, in his shirt and slacks, his tie hastily thrown around his shoulders, catching Jamie in a hug, picking him up.

"Great game sweetie," Deb smiled, as her and Haley caught up to them.

"Thanks mom," Nathan replied, "What do you think bud? How'd I do?"

"Well, you had a turnover in the first quarter, and you looked kinda tired at the end," Jamie said, "But other than that, I counted 20 points, 8 assists, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal."

"Wow," Nathan laughed, "You better thank your mom for making you so smart."

"Nathan!" Nino yelled, as he stood across the court, holding Mel's hand, "Interview time, let's go, bro!"

Nathan sighed, putting Jamie down before hugging Haley, "Just this last press conference, and then I'm all yours for two whole days, I promise."

Haley gave him a quick kiss, "I'll take whatever I can get."

* * *

The next night, Haley, Nathan, and Jamie were just finishing up dinner, when Nathan made a suggestion, "We should go driving and look at the Christmas lights. You guys haven't done that yet, have you?"

"No, we haven't had the time," Haley replied, "What do you say Jimmy Jam?"

"I'll go get my coat!" Jamie exclaimed, jumping up from the table.

"Ah, aren't you forgetting something?" Haley raised her eyebrow at the young boy.

Jamie took a few step backwards, grabbing his plate and taking it to the sink where Haley was waiting, before running to his room.

"You've got him trained pretty well," Nathan laughed, standing behind Haley, his arms wrapped around her, trailing a few kisses down her neck.

Haley turned to look at him, "Don't think that this gets you out of doing the dishes. You're home, it's your turn."

Nathan groaned, "Ugh, so close."

* * *

Twenty minutes later, the family was in the car, driving through the neighborhood looking at all of the houses decorated with Christmas lights and decorations.

"Woah, look at that one!" Jamie exclaimed, pressing his nose against the glass of the car window. He'd said that phrase at almost all the houses they'd passed.

Soon, though, Nathan had pulled over, in front of a large house that was dark, the only house for miles it seemed that wasn't decorated for Christmas.

"Why are we stopping?" Haley asked, looking at Nathan, an inquisitive look in her eyes.

"What do you think of this one?" Nathan retorted, ignoring her question. When Haley didn't answer, he unbuckled his seat belt, "Come on, I'm serious."

Haley and Jamie were both confused, but followed suit, getting out of the car, staring at the large, dark house in front of them.

"This one's lame," Jamie complained, "The Grinch must live here or something. There's not any lights or decorations or anything."

"Yeah, maybe you're right Jame," Nathan replied, "But I think it'll look good next year. But we're going to need a lot of lights if we're going to do it up right."

"Why would we decorate this house?" Jamie questioned, "We don't even live here."

Realization then began to creep into Haley's mind, as she turned, "Nathan, what are you talking about?"

"I mean, we won't want the neighbors to think we're the Grinch family, will we Hales?" Nathan smiled, pulling a set of keys out of his pocket, "Merry Christmas."

Haley was blown away. She had definitely not been expecting this, "You bought a house?"

"Hales, the bungalow was great for you and Jamie," Nathan stated, "But with the three of us, you've got to admit, we could use more space. Plus, this will be a good start for us. New beginnings, remember?"

Tears welled in Haley's eyes as she looked at this amazing man in front of her. Only months ago, she'd thrown him out of the café. Never could she have imagined the 180 degree change he would make. She couldn't believe how caring and thoughtful he really was, underneath his macho confident bravado exterior.

"Thank you," she managed to stammer, a few tears beginning to fall as she leaned into his embrace.

Jamie furrowed his brow, "Hey, aren't you forgetting something?"

Haley laughed, wiping away the tears as Nathan picked up Jamie, and the three shared a group hug.

"And you know what the best part is Jamie?" Nathan smiled, looking at his son.

"What?" Jamie asked excitedly.

"The backyard has a pool and a basketball court," he replied, "You wanna check it out?"

* * *

"Nathan, this house is huge," Haley walked around, her mouth wide open in shock, before she turned to face him, her eyes narrowed, "How did you do all of this without me knowing?"

"I might've had some helpful scouts who toured the houses for me and sent me pictures," Nathan shrugged.

"I'm going to kill Lucas and Brooke," Haley shook her head.

"Do you like it?" Nathan questioned, "I know this is something we should have decided on together, but I wanted to surprise you."

Haley laced their fingers together, "This is the perfect Christmas and the perfect house. I couldn't ask for anything better."

The two watched as Jamie ran upstairs, "I'm picking my room!"

"Seriously though Nathan, what are we going to do?" Haley asked, "There's so many rooms!"

"You forgot how much fun we're gonna have filling them up with kids," Nathan smiled mischievously, "Or at least practicing."

"Really?" Haley raised her eyebrows, "All these rooms?"

"All of them," Nathan nodded, "It's a big house."

* * *

"I think Jamie had a good Christmas," Haley smiled, as she sat in the living room Christmas morning, a sea of ripped wrapping paper surrounding her.

Jamie was currently playing NBA Live with Deb, who was clueless as to how to play the video game, but had agreed at Jamie's insistence.

"Wait, which team am I again?" Deb questioned, as she stared at the controller in her hands, and then at the screen.

"Gramma Deb, you're the Bulls," Jamie sighed, "The red jerseys. I'm the Bobcats, the best team in the whole world."

"You know how hard it's going to be to rip him away from the TV and that game now?" Haley questioned, looking at Nathan, who was all too enthralled with the game, "Nathan?"

"What Hales?" Nathan questioned, immediately realizing he hadn't heard a word she'd said as he pointed to the screen, "Sorry, I just made a three."

"Nathan, sweetheart, can you take over for me?" Deb pleaded, holding out the controller, "I surrender."

Nathan laughed as he sat next to Jamie on the couch, "Really Mom? It's 85-3 and it's the second quarter."

"The only reason she made a three was because she was pushing all the buttons when Dwayne Wade had the ball, Daddy," Jamie interjected.

"I'm going to start on breakfast," Haley smiled, "Think you're up to helping me Deb?"

"Now there's something I can handle," Deb accepted, following Haley into the kitchen.

* * *

"I haven't made homemade cinnamon rolls since Nathan was little," Deb sighed, as the two women rolled out the dough on the counter.

"We had them every Christmas morning when I was growing up," Haley explained, "My mom and my sisters and I would make them while my dad and my brothers cleaned up all the wrapping paper mess."

"I always thought I would have a lot of children," Deb said, "My brother Cooper, Nathan's uncle, was born when I was 12. I practically raised him myself. But…I guess things don't always turn out the way you think they will."

Deb noticed Haley yawning as she spread the cinnamon on the dough.

"I know Jamie woke us up pretty early, Haley, but did you sleep alright?" Deb questioned, "It seems like every time I look at you, you're yawning."

"Yeah, I slept fine," Haley replied, yawning again, "I've just been really tired lately. A lot going on, you know? With the café, and Red Bedroom, and now with having to pack everything up and move. It's a lot to take on."

"Well, at least you don't have to do it alone," Deb smiled, as the two women finished slicing up the cinnamon rolls and got them in the oven.

Deb began to walk back to the living room, Haley behind her, when Haley suddenly felt dizzy, and grabbed onto the counter to steady herself.

"Are you okay Haley?" Deb asked, turning to see her daughter-in-law leaning on the counter.

"Yeah," Haley assured her, standing straight and loosening her grip on the counter, "I just don't know if I want to see what the score is now."

"I'm still winning Mama!" Jamie exclaimed, as Haley smiled, taking a seat next to Nathan on the couch.

Deb, although concerned, shook her head, sitting down with her family to enjoy the rest of Christmas Day.

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoyed this chapter!**

 **Please review or PM me and let me know what YOU would like to see happen in this story! I love ideas and suggestions!**


	20. Chapter 20

**New Year's Eve-December 31** **st**

Haley stood at the window of the Bobcats' coach Bobby Irons' penthouse, staring out at the Charlotte cityscape. Nathan had had the weekend off, and Haley had surprised him by coming up to Charlotte to spend some time, just the two of them. Now, they were at the team's New Year's Eve party.

"Hales," she heard Nathan call, and she turned to see that he was motioning her over.

She saw that he was talking with his coach, Bobby, and a woman who she assumed to be Bobby's wife.

"You've met Coach, but this is his much better half, Lisa," Nathan introduced, "Lisa, this is my wife Haley."

"It's so nice to meet you," Lisa smiled, "You and that son of yours are all Nathan can talk about at team functions."

"All good things I hope," Haley laughed nervously.

"Of course," Lisa replied, "Do you have a picture of the little guy?"

Haley showed her a few photos on her phone of the family of three on Christmas, the most recent photos she had.

"A handsome little tyke," Lisa smiled, "Are you two wanting to add to the family anytime soon?"

"Lisa!" Coach Irons exclaimed, "I'm sorry, that's none of our business."

Haley suddenly felt like the heat in the room had gone up a hundred degrees, "Would you excuse me? I need some air."

Haley set her champagne glass on a side table before heading out onto the empty balcony.

* * *

She had her elbow propped on the edge of the balcony wall, her chin resting in her hand as she took a few deep breaths, before she felt a hand meet her back.

"Are you alright?" Nathan asked, "I'm sorry about Lisa. She can be a little…over eager sometimes. I should have warned you."

"It's fine," Haley shook her head, "Really, it was just a little stuffy in there."

Nathan gave her a knowing look, "You've been acting weird and distant all weekend. What's going on? Is everything okay?"

Haley sighed, finally making eye contact with him as she twisted her wedding ring on her finger, a nervous habit that Nathan had picked up on.

"I thought that I was pregnant," Haley finally stated, turning around so her back was to Nathan, her hand on her temple.

Nathan's eyes widened, "W..Wh…When?"

"Christmas," Haley answered, turning to face him again, tears forming in her eyes, "I'd been feeling weird for a few weeks, tired and dizzy. I went to the doctor a few hours after you left, to figure out what was going on."

* * *

 _ **FLASHBACK-December 26th**_

 _ **Haley nervously paced back and forth in the house, as she waited for Brooke to arrive. She'd called her as soon as Nathan had left for Charlotte. Finally, she burst through the door, Liam's car seat tucked under her arm.**_

" _ **Tutor Mom, what's the emergency?" Brooke stammered, "I got here as fast as I could."**_

 _ **Haley bit her lip, "I think I'm pregnant."**_

 _ **Brooke's mouth dropped open, as she set Liam's car seat next to the couch, taking a seat next to her friend, "What?"**_

" _ **I'm late, and I'm never late," Haley said quickly, "And I'm freaking out."**_

" _ **Woah…Haley…woah," Brooke replied, trying to take it all in, "Have you told Nathan?"**_

 _ **Haley shook her head, "No, I don't want to tell him, and then have it be a false alarm. He bought the house and said that he wants to fill all the rooms with kids and it's just….I don't want to let him down."**_

" _ **Well, if you want to be 100% sure, you need to go to the doctor," Brooke suggested, "Come on, I'll go with you. Is Jamie with Deb?"**_

" _ **Yeah, she took him shopping for the day after Christmas sales," Haley managed to stammer, grabbing her purse and her phone.**_

 _ **Haley sat on the exam table, fidgeting as she waited for the doctor to return. They'd just taken her blood and a urine sample and were sending them in for testing. As she nervously shifted from side to side, her doctor walked in.**_

" _ **Alright Haley," the doctor smiled, "We will call you with the test results. Should get them back no later than tomorrow. Until then, it's a waiting game."**_

" _ **Thank you," Haley sighed, as she found Brooke in the waiting room a few minutes later.**_

" _ **Haley, relax," Brooke assured her, "Everything will turn out the way it's supposed to."**_

 _ **END FLASHBACK**_

* * *

"And?" Nathan asked, taking a step towards her.

"I'm not," Haley shook her head, "The doctor just said my symptoms were from stress and that I should rest for a few days."

"Okay," Nathan nodded, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"You were on the road and I didn't want to get your hopes up," Haley explained, wiping a few tears from her face, "You bought the house and talked about how you wanted to fill it with kids. I didn't want to disappoint you."

"Haley," Nathan sighed, closing the distance between them, wrapping his arms tightly around as she nuzzled into his chest, "I never thought I would get to have this: you, Jamie, a real family. And now I have it, and even if it's just the three of us forever, I feel like the luckiest man in the world."

"Thank you for being such an amazing husband," Haley looked up at him, "I'm sorry…I should have told you."

"Let's just focus on new beginnings," Nathan replied, "Moving into our new house, officially starting our lives together, as husband and wife."

"Let's start the countdown everyone," Coach Irons said loudly from inside, "Twenty…nineteen, eighteen…"

"Let's make a New Year's Resolution," Haley quickly told Nathan, "No matter what happens this next year…we'll face it together, okay?"

"Always," Nathan smiled.

"And forever," Haley replied softly.

"Five, four, three, two, one, HAPPY NEW YEAR!" everyone inside exclaimed, as fireworks went off over the Charlotte cityscape.

"Happy new year," Nathan whispered, before meeting Haley's lips with his own. He heard her moan and he smiled against her lips. It felt good knowing that even after months, he could get that reaction out of her from a simple kiss.

* * *

 _ **A few weeks later…**_

"You didn't have to come all the way out to Tree Hill Mel," Haley said, as the two women carried boxes into the Scott's new home, Brooke right behind them "But I really do appreciate the help."

"My pleasure" Mel replied, "I know you'd rather have your big, strong husband here, but it's nice to get away from the hustle and bustle of the big city."

"We'd planned to move in this weekend because they didn't have a game, but then the Children's Hospital called and asked if the team could visit," Haley explained to them, "And I told Nathan that we could wait, but he insisted that we move in now or we could be waiting a lot longer. He was upset that we'd had to postpone once already."

"Well, at least you have a lot of help here," Mel said optimistically, gesturing around the house, "What is it that they say….many hands make light work?"

The whole gang was at the house, helping bring in and unpack boxes. Haley was grateful for the help, but was still exhausted. Mia's first album was almost done and they'd been at the studio every day trying to finish it up. With all of the studio time, the café, and Jamie, Haley had an extremely full plate. She hadn't told Nathan that she wasn't following the doctor's rest advice exactly, but she didn't really have a choice, and besides, she liked keeping busy, especially with him being gone.

* * *

"Brooke, he's adorable," Mel cooed, as she held baby Liam later at the café, after they'd gotten everything moved in, "How old is he?"

"Almost six months," Brooke smiled, "I can't believe he's so big already."

"Just wait until he can talk back," Haley laughed.

"Oh, Tutor Mom, my godson is an angel," Brooke retorted.

"He certainly has us all under his spell," said Haley, "He's just so smart for a five year old, you know? Definitely keeps us on our toes."

"Well, I for one am under the spell of this little guy," Mel smiled, as Liam blinked his big blue eyes. He was the spitting image of Lucas, "I'm serious Brooke. I'm offering a trade. My Charlotte penthouse, for Liam. Straight up."

"Oh, I don't know," Brooke narrowed her eyes, thinking "That's tempting."

Mel continued, "I'll throw in my car, and my purse. Car has new tires, but that's it."

"Hmmm…" Brooke thought as Liam reached out for her, "What do you say? Say no deal!"

"Say yes!" Mel exclaimed.

"No deal!" Brooke squeaked, imitating Liam, "I like it here."

"Eh, it was worth a try," Mel sighed.

Everyone turned at the sound of a clearing throat, spying Fergie standing nervously next to them.

"I didn't get a chance to introduce myself back at the house," he began, holding out his hand to Mel, "Ferguson Thompson."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Mel smiled politely, shaking his hand, looking slightly uncomfortable, as Haley and Brooke tried to keep from laughing.

"The pleasure is all mine," Fergie smiled, bringing her hand to his lips, kissing it lightly.

This brought Haley and Brooke to their bursting point, as they couldn't hold their laughter any longer. Mel quickly pulled her hand away, trying to still be polite.

"What?" Fergie asked innocently.

"Fergie, you don't know who this is?" Brooke questioned, tears forming in her eyes from so much laughter.

Looking dumbfounded, Fergie shook his head.

"This is Mel Jones," Haley managed to say between laughs, "Nino's wife."

Shock and embarrassment filled Fergie's face, as he slowly retreated, his eyes wide.

"That was….interesting," Mel finally said, breaking the awkward silence.

"We've known him since high school," Haley replied, "He's harmless.

"So it must be really great, having all your friends from high school still around, still so close," Mel suggested.

"Well, we all talked about coming back here after college," Brooke sighed, as she and Haley remembered that night on the river court after graduation, "I actually moved to New York for a year, but there's just something about this town that brought me back.

"Lucas," Haley coughed, not-so-subtly.

"Haha, very funny," Brooke smiled, "And on that note, I have to get going. Mr. Liam here has a doctor's appointment and I don't think I can sweet talk the receptionist if I'm late again.

* * *

Haley and Jamie sat on the floor in their new living room a few days later, surrounded by boxes.

"Mama, what are these?" Jamie asked, pulling Haley's junior and senior yearbook out of one of the boxes.

Haley opened her mouth to answer, but the doorbell cut her off.

"Who could that be?" Haley questioned, "Jamie, why don't you go see who it is?"

"Why can't you go answer the door?" Jamie asked, as he opened one of the yearbooks.

"Jamie Lucas James, go answer the door," Haley sternly said, eyebrows raised.

She sighed as he got up, rolling his eyes, and disappeared to the entryway. When she heard his "happy scream," she forgave him for his minor bout of attitude.

"Mama, Daddy's home!" Jamie exclaimed, as Nathan walked into the living room holding Jamie upside down.

"What a surprise," Haley smiled, although she had known about it the whole time. Nathan had another 24 hour break, and although it wasn't much time, they'd make the most of it.

* * *

"So what are we doing?" Nathan asked, as he set Jamie down.

Jamie quickly picked the yearbooks up again, bringing them over to Nathan, "We were going to look at these."

"Oh really?" Nathan asked, surprised. All this time they'd been together, he hadn't ever looked at Haley's high school yearbooks, let alone seen a picture of her from high school.

The three of them sat on the couch, Jamie in between them, Haley's junior yearbook on his lap.

"Look, there's Uncle Lucas," Jamie pointed to a picture of Lucas shooting a three pointer during a Ravens basketball game.

"That's right," Haley acknowledged, shifting her gaze to another photo, "Jamie, who's that?"

Her finger pointed to a photo of three smiling cheerleaders, a candid photo, taken in the courtyard of the school.

"Woah, is that you and Aunt Peyton and Aunt Brooke?" Jamie's eyes widened, "Wow mama, you sure were pretty."

"She still is you goof," Nathan shoved Jamie playfully, as the little boy yawned.

"Looks like someone is ready for bed," Haley pointed out, tilting her head towards Jamie.

"Who?" Jamie asked sleepily.

"Upstairs Jimmy Jam," Haley insisted, pulling him up off the couch, "PJs, brush teeth, bed. I'll be up in a minute to tuck you in."

"Can Daddy do it?" Jamie pleaded.

"Fine, get upstairs mister," Haley smiled, as Jamie ran up the stairs.

* * *

Haley returned to sit next to Nathan, cuddled up next to him as his arm wrapped around her shoulder, pulling her closer to him.

"This feels like a different lifetime," Haley sighed, as Nathan turned the pages, "Before the tour, before Jamie. Before my life changed forever."

"What about this one?" Nathan suggested, grabbing her senior yearbook.

"If you want to see my time as a whale captured in photos, go right ahead," Haley laughed, as Nathan turned to the Senior Superlatives page.

He pointed to the photo of Brooke and Lucas, "Couple most likely to get married. They hit that nail on the head."

"They had their hard times, but I always knew they'd end up together," Haley smiled, "It was kind of weird, my two best friends as a couple, but I became a professional third wheel."

"Most likely to be a starving artist…I bet Peyton loved that one," Nathan laughed, "Wow, she looked a lot different back then."

"A lot happened to her senior year that changed her," Haley said, thinking about Peyton finding out she was adopted, her biological mom dying, and finding out she had a half-brother, "Thank god she had Jake though. He was with her through everything. He was her rock."

Nathan's eyes came to rest on a photo of a smiling Haley, her hair curled and her stomach protruding rather noticeably, "You were voted Most Likely to Become Famous?"

Haley scoffed, "Yeah, they had a real sense of humor, my class."

"They must've known how talented you were," Nathan smirked.

"More like they thought I was going to be on Teen Mom, you know, that reality show?" Haley explained to him, "Regardless, these predictions, they're fun to look back on."

"Hales, you're in this yearbook a lot," Nathan pointed out, as he saw her face in the Tutoring Center staff photo, the Cheerleading squad, Student Government, National Honor Society, Yearbook staff, and Mathletes, "You were a mathlete?"

He couldn't stifle the chuckle that escaped his lips, as Haley smacked his chest.

"Hey, we won a national championship, thank you very much," Haley informed him, "Mouth and I had a lot of fun in that club."

"Looks like it," Nathan smiled as he looked at a photo of the club holding a cake in the shape of the symbol for pi. Understandably, Haley was the only girl in the photo, "You did all of this and worked at the café, and were valedictorian?"

"Yeah," Haley sighed, "It was a lot of work, especially since that last part almost didn't happen."

"What?" Nathan questioned, surprised, "Lucas told me that you had the best grades in your class, by a long shot."

"I did, but the school board didn't want a pregnant girl representing the high school," Haley explained, "They thought it could ruin the school's reputation."

"So how did you go about changing their minds?" Nathan asked, as he finally turned to the last two pages of the yearbook, graduation, with a large photo of Haley speaking at the podium on the stage.

"Peyton started a petition," Haley remembered, "She hounded everyone around town and got a thousand signatures. She threatened to go to the media with the story that a high school was discriminating against a student. That got them to change their minds pretty quick."

"Daddy!" Jamie called, sounding impatient.

"Duty calls," Nathan smiled, placing a kiss to Haley's forehead, before jumping up and heading upstairs.

* * *

 **A few days later…Charlotte, NC**

"Thank you for tuning in to SportsCenter. I'm Josie Kent, and today, I'm joined in the studio by Bobcats' star players Nino Jones and Nathan Scott."

"Thank you for having us," Nathan said.

"It's great to be here," Nino added.

"The Bobcats are undefeated in the regular season, which is a far cry from preseason, where you lost four games. Nino, do you think Nathan's return to the court has anything to do with the team's turnaround?" Josie asked.

Nino smiled, "Nathan is an essential part of the team. We wouldn't be the same without him. It's great to be able to play with such talented guys. I think we all work together really well, and I think we've found our groove, but we take it game by game."

"Nathan, you've recently been compared to greats such as Magic Johnson and Allen Iverson. How does that feel?" Josie asked.

"You know, it's a great honor to even be mentioned in the same sentence as those men," Nathan began, "But I'm just doing my job, the best I can, and I don't ever compare myself to anyone. I'm just…me."

Josie smiled, "It's been said that you two are the dynamic duo that Charlotte fans have been waiting for. It's well known that the Bobcats have never won an NBA Finals Championship. Is this the year?"

"We don't want to try to predict or jinx anything," Nino said, "Like Nate said, we're taking it one game at a time. We're just grateful to our team, our fans, and our families for the support that they give us. We wouldn't be here without them."

"Well, thank you for being here today, and we look forward to seeing what the rest of the season has for the Bobcats," Josie smiled.

* * *

 **Ugh, not exactly the chapter I wanted to put out, but I hope you all enjoyed it!**

 **Please review or PM me and let me know what YOU would like to see happen in this story! I love ideas and suggestions!**


	21. Chapter 21

**February**

"Mama, Gramma Deb is Daddy's mom, right?" Jamie asked, as he and Haley sat at the kitchen table, making Jamie's valentines for his class party.

"That's right sweetie," Haley smiled, glancing at her phone for the third time in the past five minutes. She was expecting a call from Nathan when his flight landed. He'd be home for Valentine's Day, a rare treat, but had a game the day before and the day after.

"And your mama and daddy are in heaven, right?" Jamie continued, as he carefully wrote Chuck's name on a sports valentine.

"Yeah they are," Haley replied, "I know you don't remember, but they loved you so much baby."

"What about Daddy's dad?" Jamie questioned, turning to look at Haley, "Is he in heaven too?"

After everything that had happened with Dan and Deb's attack, Jamie still didn't know that Dan was the man who he'd seen attack Deb. They'd all decided he was too young, and didn't need to know.

"Ummm…well," Haley stammered, trying to think of what to say. Before she could finish though, the doorbell rang, "I'll get that. Why don't you take a break from this and go clean your room."

"But mama," Jamie whined.

"Didn't dad tell you it had to be clean before he got home?" Haley raised her eyebrows, looking at her young son. He sighed, before running upstairs.

* * *

As Haley opened the door, she came face to face with the very person Jamie had been asking about: Dan.

"Haley, I just want," Dan began, before Haley cut in.

"Not going to happen Dan," Haley said, before trying to close the door. Dan, however, stopped her, his strong grip overpowering her.

"Haley, I came to apologize," Dan insisted, "What I've done, to all of you, it wasn't right."

"And you're just now realizing that?" Haley glared, "Give it up Dan. Leave now, or I'm calling the police."

"You should listen to her, Dan," a voice said, coming from behind Dan.

The person finally came into view: Nathan, carrying a duffle bag, an angry look resting upon his face.

"I told you to stay the hell away from my family, and I meant it," Nathan warned, setting his bag down on the porch, "Haley, go in the house."

"Nathan," Haley sighed, "Please don't."

"Haley, it's okay," Nathan assured her, "Please."

Biting her lip, as Dan finally loosened his grip on the door, she closed it, heading upstairs to make sure Jamie was alright.

* * *

Nathan shook his head, before punching his father square in the jaw. This caused to Dan to stagger backwards, falling back onto the porch.

"You should go," Nathan stated, "I don't want to see you around here again. I mean it."

Dan wiped the small amount of blood from his face, as he stood up, "I guess I deserved that. All I wanted to tell you, son, and Haley, was that I was sorry. For everything. I know I haven't exactly been the best father, but I swear to you that everything I've ever done has been because I love you, son."

"Oh really?" Nathan exclaimed, "You tried to kill my mother, while my son was home, because you love me?"

"I wasn't in my right mind, Nathan," Dan tried to explain, "All I wanted was to be in your life. To get to know my grandson and my daughter-in-law. I just want us to be a family."

"How can I ever trust you again after all you've done?" Nathan yelled, running his hands through his hair, obviously frustrated.

"Son, I went and saw your mother in Jacksonville," Dan related, causing Nathan's head to snap up, his eyes locking with his father's.

Deb was in Jacksonville for a few weeks, visiting Cooper and his wife Rachel, who had just had their first baby.

"She punched me, and Cooper got a few shots in too," Dan laughed, "Guess that runs in the family. I've been in AA, Nathan. I'm onto the sixth step, making amends. That's what I'm trying to do here."

"You know what, Dan," Nathan sighed, "I can't do this right now. I only have a few days home with my family."

"You know where to find me, when you're ready son," Dan said sincerely, before turning back to his car. He retrieved a bag that had been resting on the hood and held it out to Nathan, "A late Christmas present for Jamie."

* * *

Nathan hesitated, before taking the bag and heading inside, coming face to face with his wife and son.

"Who was that Daddy?" Jamie asked, before spying the present in his hand, "Oooh! A present! Is it for me?"

Nathan opened his mouth to answer, but before he could, Jamie had torn the bag from his hands and pulled out the contents: a kid's sized basketball jersey, with "Scott 23" on the bag, the front emblazoned with the word TIGERS.

"Look daddy, it's your number!" Jamie exclaimed, quickly slipping the jersey over his head.

"It is huh?" Nathan sighed, forcing a smile on his face as he saw the young boy's excitement, "Jimmy Jam, what do you say you and I go down to the Rivercourt and shoot around?"

"I'll go get my shoes on!" Jamie screeched, running back up the stairs.

Haley sighed, turning towards her husband, "What are we going to do about Dan? He keeps coming around. I saw him outside Jamie's school the other day, and then he shows up here?"

"I told him he's not welcome here and to stay away," Nathan explained, "And if he doesn't, we'll call the police."

"Jamie keeps asking about him," Haley replied, "He knows my parents are dead, and asked if your dad was too."

"What did you say?" Nathan asked.

"Well, I didn't get a chance to answer, thanks to Dan ringing the doorbell," Haley said, running a hand through her hair, "He's just a smart little boy who knows he's supposed to have a grandpa somewhere, but how do you tell a six-year-old that their grandfather is a monster?"

"You don't," Nathan said, wrapping his arms around his wife, "For all Jamie needs to know, Dan is dead too."

* * *

"Peyton, she's beautiful," Haley cooed, as she stood in the Jagielski home, holding the new baby in her arms.

A week earlier, Peyton and Jake had finally tied the knot, in a small ceremony with close family and friends. The next day, Peyton had gone into labor, and after giving everyone a scare with how much blood she had lost during the delivery, she and the baby had made it through, safe and sound.

Anna Elizabeth Jagielski, named after Peyton's adopted mom and biological mom, was a picture-perfect baby. She had her father's curly brown hair and her mother's green eyes.

"Congrats man," Nathan said, "Well, double congrats I guess."

"Thanks Nate," Jake smiled, as the two stood, watching their wives fawn over the baby girl, "I've got everything I've ever wanted: a wife that's way out of my league, a beautiful daughter, a house of our own. It's perfect."

Nathan smiled, as his eyes met Haley's. He thought back to the night before, Valentine's Day. Their first Valentine's Day together.

* * *

 **FLASHBACK**

" _Nathan, I don't think this is very safe," Haley warned, as she gripped his arm tighter, a blindfold covering her eyes as the two walked, "Where are we going?"_

" _You'll see," Nathan laughed, "We're almost there, hang on."_

 _Nathan guided Haley to sit in a chair, before taking a seat at his own across the table from her._

" _Alright, take it off," Nathan smirked, as Haley slid the blindfold off her face, "I wasn't talking about the blindfold."_

" _Haha," Haley smiled, as she looked around at their surroundings, "The Docks?"_

" _I figured I owed you after the way our first date ended," Nathan explained._

" _This is perfect," Haley replied, kissing him softly on the lips, "Thank you baby."_

" _And now, we'll order a bottle of their finest Merlot, to celebrate our first Valentine's Day," Nathan replied, smiling at Haley._

" _Um, actually, I'll just have water," Haley said, looking a little nervous._

" _What?" Nathan looked confused._

" _I was going to wait to tell you till later tonight, but," Haley paused, seeing the wheels turn in Nathan's head as his eyes widened._

" _Are you…are we…?" he stammered._

" _Yeah," Haley's eyes welled with tears, "I found out this morning."_

 _Nathan stood, picking Haley up and spinning her around, a smile never leaving his face._

" _Woah cowboy, unless you want me puking all over you and ruining this night, you'll put me down," Haley laughed._

 _Nathan set her down carefully, as her arms wrapped around his neck and they looked into each other's eyes, "We're having a baby."_

" _Maybe a little boy, with your smile," Haley said, "Jamie'd like having a little brother."_

" _Nah, a little girl just like you," Nathan replied, as the two shared a passionate kiss._

 **END FLASHBACK**

* * *

 _ **I know this is a shorter chapter than I usually write, but I wanted to get an update up for y'all. Hope you like it! I'll try to update ASAP!**_


	22. Chapter 22

**Alright, I know I hate when authors on this site give lengthy excuses for why they haven't updated their stories in a long time. And yet, here I am, being one of those people. I AM SOOOOO sorry for the long period between updates. Honestly, there were a lot of factors that played into my not writing. 1) I work 40+ hours a week and hardly get any down time. 2) I just got finished with school, but it's kept me busy the past few months. 3) I moved into a new apartment, and had to deal with all the stress involved with that. And the list can go on and on.**

 **But I want to sincerely thank those who have stuck with this story!**

* * *

Haley stood on a stool, reaching up to grab a storage bin from the tall shelves in the garage. She had almost gotten it when she felt a pair of hands wrap around her waist.

"Hales, what do you think you're doing?" Nathan asked, helping her down and grabbing the bin without the stool.

"Nathan, I'm pregnant, not elderly," Haley laughed, raising her eyebrow at him.

"You could fall or something," Nathan said, "And that's not happening on my watch."

"Hey, I may have a baby in here," she gestured to her now protruding five-month pregnant stomach, "But I don't need a babysitter just yet."

"Whatever you say, Hales," he smiled, "So, are you excited for the ultrasound?"

"I know you're excited," Haley replied, "It'll be the first one you've gotten to go to since we first heard the heartbeat."

* * *

** **Flashback** **

"Alright, Mrs. Scott, this is going to feel a little cold," the ultrasound tech said as she squirted gel onto Haley's still-flat stomach, moving the probe around.

After doing a few measurements, she turned to the pair, "So, you look to be around ten weeks pregnant. The baby is measuring perfectly. There it is, right there."

She pointed to the screen, where all Nathan could see was a fuzzy black and white blob.

"That's the baby?" Nathan questioned. He vaguely remembered Jake showing him one of Anna's ultrasound photos, but he just couldn't wrap his head around the fact that this little peanut-shaped blob was their baby.

"Is this your first?" the woman asked, as she smiled at the two of them, her eyes drifting to their interlocked hands.

"It's our first together," Haley quickly replied, "I've done this before, but he's a newbie."

"Don't worry, it's completely normal to think this is weird," the tech laughed, "If you ask me, it's hard to imagine that this little bean here will grow into a big, strong baby."

"Hopefully not too big," Haley laughed, as Nathan squeezed her hand.

"Would you like to hear the heartbeat?" the ultrasound tech asked, as Nathan furiously nodded, completely fascinated by this whole process.

After moving the probe a bit more, a fast thumping sound filled the room.

"A good strong heartbeat," she said, "That is a fabulous sign. I'll print out a few pictures, Mom and Dad. Congratulations!"

 ****End Flashback****

* * *

"Mr. and Mrs. Scott, good to see you again," the ultrasound tech, who's name they'd learned was Penny, said, "And who is this handsome gentleman?"

Jamie reached out his hand to the woman, shaking it, "My name is James Lucas Scott, age 6."

That was another new development. Shortly after discovering Haley was pregnant, they'd worked to file the paperwork so that Nathan could legally adopt Jamie. Chris signed his rights away without a fuss, a fact Haley was extremely grateful for.

"Well, are we going to find out what we're having today?" Penny asked, as she squirted the still-cold gel onto Haley's baby bump.

Haley turned to Nathan, "Do you want to know, babe?"

The past few months, Nathan and Haley had both gone back and forth about finding out the baby's gender. While the thought of having a surprise intrigued them, it also made it difficult for their nosy family and friends, who wanted so desperately to know so they could buy things for the child and spoil it before it was even born. Nathan, though, had been struggling the most with the decision. Honestly, he was kind of scared to find out what the baby was. But he wouldn't admit it.

"Yeah," Nathan nodded, smiling.

"Alright, let's see if he or she will cooperate here," Penny began to move the probe, until they saw the baby's legs, "Alright Mom and Dad, see that there?"

She pointed to a dark part of the screen. Nathan was confused, "There's nothing there."

"Exactly," Penny laughed, "Congrats Scott family! It's a girl!"

* * *

Later that night, Nathan and Haley lay in bed, still overjoyed with the news of their daughter.

"I can't believe you were right," Haley sighed, her hand tracing his muscled chest, "I was so sure it was a boy."

"Oh come on Hales, I'm always right," Nathan joked, receiving a punch in the gut from his wife.

"Whatever," she stated.

A few moments passed, as Nathan wrapped one arm around his wife's shoulders, the other cradling her stomach.

"You know, I want a daughter, just like you. I want to look into her eyes and feel my heart break because she reminds me so much of her beautiful, kind, strong, mother," Nathan said lovingly.

"I wish you didn't have to go tomorrow," Haley huffed, leaning into her husband's embrace.

"I mean, I'm sure the team can tell the President I had more important plans," Nathan suggested, receiving a grin from Haley.

The Bobcats had won the NBA Championship the week before, and as a part of their victory tour, they were set to meet the President at the White House the next day.

"Do you know how proud of you I am?" Haley looked into his blue eyes, "You have come so far from that guy I met last summer, you know that?"

"I couldn't have done it without you, and Jamie," Nathan replied, "You two have changed my life, and I wouldn't have it any other way. And soon, our lives will be changed even more."

"What do you think, Daddy?" Haley questioned, a sly look in her eye, "You think you can handle two kids?"

"I know that I can do anything, as long as I'm with you," he answered, smiling before placing a soft kiss to her lips.

* * *

 **Sorry for the short chapter, but I am considering having this be the end of this story. Might have one more chapter: an epilogue. I just have ideas for other stories and kind of lost inspiration for this one.**

 **Please review and let me know what you think and what you would like to see in the epilogue!**


	23. Chapter 23

"Hales, you can do it, baby, you're doing so great!" Nathan exclaimed, as Haley squeezed his hand so tightly, he thought it might break off.

"Nathan," she said through gritted teeth, "Shut…the hell….up."

"Alright Mrs. Scott, she's almost here, just a few more pushes!" the doctor said.

Ten minutes later, Lydia Bob Scott entered the world. 7 pounds 6 ounces, 19 inches long. Her head was full of dark hair like her dad.

The proud parents laid in the recovery room's hospital bed together, admiring the pink bundle in Nathan's arms a short while later.

"Nathan, I'm sorry about what I said before," Haley whispered, not wanting to wake a now-sleeping Lydia.

"I know you are," Nathan chuckled softly, "I'm not sure how happy Coach will be about you nearly breaking my hand though."

"Ah, Bobby loves me," Haley shrugged, "Besides, it was worth it."

"Yeah it was," Nathan replied, looking down at his daughter, "God Hales, we made a cute kid."

Haley smiled, feeling completely exhausted, but not wanting to sleep. She didn't want to miss these precious moments, with just her, Nathan, and the baby.

"Just think how cute the next one will be," she heard Nathan say as she had begun to doze off. This jolted her wide awake.

"What do you mean, the next one?" Haley whispered loudly, "I just had this one a few hours ago."

Uh oh, Nathan thought, realizing that he'd just awoken the beast in his wife. He didn't realize that her hormones would still be out of whack after having the baby. Throughout the pregnancy, he'd learned to be careful to choose his words around her. If he said anything wrong, she'd either scream, or burst into tears, or both.

"I know, babe, I was just saying that…" Nathan started to say, before Haley cut him off.

"Nathan Royal Scott, I was just in labor for 23 hours. I pushed a human out of my body, and you're already thinking about the next one?" she widened her eyes at him.

"Well, we did say we didn't want a big age gap between this baby and the next one, Hales," Nathan pointed out, "Jamie is almost 7, and while he likes having a sister now, the novelty is going to wear off at some point."

"So, how many kids are you wanting me to have, Scott?" Haley smirked, and Nathan sighed as she was coming off her hormonal high.

"Hmmm…I think five is a good number," he replied, smiling, "Enough for our own basketball team!"

"Of course, that's what you'd think about," Haley laughed, "Let's just enjoy the two we have for now, hm?"

Nathan smiled, placing a kiss to his wife's forehead as she snuggled up next to him, drifting off to sleep. He was left to watch his beautiful daughter, who'd now decided to wake up.

"Hey there princess," Nathan smiled, as she wrapped her tiny hand around his index finger, "I just want you to know that I love you and your mom and your brother more than anything in the world. And I sure as hell, I mean, heck, don't know anything about raising a daughter. But I'm hoping you'll go easy on me, if that's alright?"

Nathan was sure that at that moment, she squeezed his finger, reassuring the terrified father, "And when you get a little older, Jamie and I are going to teach you all about basketball. Hopefully, you get your height from me, and not your fun-size mom."

He felt a slap on his arm, followed by, "I heard that," being mumbled by his wife.

* * *

 **Five years later…**

"James Lucas Scott, what did I ask you to do after you finished your homework?" Haley sighed, looking at her oldest son, now twelve, sitting on the couch, engrossed in NBA live.

"Uh, what mom? Sorry bad connection," he hesitated before continuing with his game.

"Ha ha, very funny," Haley retorted, before grabbing the controller from him, "Max is not going to walk himself."

"But Mom," Jamie whined, standing up from the couch.

"Oh, you don't want to mess with me today, son, get to it," Haley warned, "You and your father wanted the dog, and you said you'd take care of it." Over the years, she had perfected the mom glare, and it indeed terrified her children, and even her husband at times too.

* * *

"Mommy, when's Daddy coming home?" five-year-old Lydia asked, running into the room. Her dark pigtails bounced as she did.

Haley smiled at the sight of her daughter. Lydia was definitely a daddy's girl. She'd had Nathan wrapped around her finger since she was born.

"He's supposed to be home soon, sweetie," Haley replied, "Where's your brother?"

Lydia immediately began looking around the room, avoiding eye contact with her mother, "I don't know."

"Lydia Bob Scott, don't you dare lie to me," Haley glared, "Where…is…your…brother?"

A few moments later, Haley discovered her three-year-old son, Carson, sitting on the counter in the bathroom, his face covered in lipstick and eye shadow.

"We were playing beauty shop Mommy," Lydia smiled proudly, "Doesn't he look pretty?"

Haley closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she rested her hands on her temples. Of course her normally-mostly-well-behaved children chose today of all days to test her patience to the extreme.

Ten makeup remover wipes later, Carson's face was mostly clean, and just as Haley took him off the counter, the door slammed shut, and a baby's cry could be heard throughout the house.

"Jamie, what have I told you about slamming the door when Blake is sleeping?" Haley asked as she ran up the stairs.

As she entered the bedroom, the 1 year old brown haired boy was standing in his crib, and when he spotted his mother, his loud cries turned to mere whimpers.

"Shh….Mama's here," she comforted the boy, picking him up as he nestled his head into her shoulder.

* * *

She carried him down the stairs, smiling when she saw who was sneaking in through the front door.

"About time you got home Mr. Scott," she said as Blake squirmed out her arms and ran to Nathan, who scooped him right up.

"I missed you baby," Nathan said, placing a soft kiss to her lips.

Haley couldn't stifle a yawn, "I missed you too."

"Yeah, it really looks like it," Nathan joked, slipping his arm around her shoulders as they walked into the kitchen, "Long day?"

"Oh, you don't even want to know what your kids did today," Haley warned.

"My kids? So now they're just my kids?" he scoffed playfully.

"They're your kids when they act crazy," Haley said, "I swear they can sense when you're almost home, because they go completely bonkers."

* * *

"I thought they'd never fall asleep!" Haley exclaimed later that night, as the two laid on the couch, her head resting on his shoulder, his arm around her waist.

Nathan smiled, "Maybe I shouldn't have let them each have two cookies."

"Two?" Haley replied, glaring at him "Watch it Scott, or I'll blow your other knee."

After playing in the NBA for two more years after Lydia was born, shortly after Carson had come along, Nathan had blown out his left knee in a game, ending his career. Haley had been worried that it would crush him, not having basketball in his life, but, thanks to Clay, Nathan had begun working as a sports agent at Fortitude, Clay's sports management agency.

The two heard footsteps coming down the stairs, and were met by the bright blue eyes and dark hair of Lydia.

"What are you doing out of bed?" Nathan asked, looking softly at the young girl.

"I couldn't fall asleep, will you come tell me a story?" she asked, sticking out her bottom lip, giving Nathan the face that Haley knew he couldn't say no too.

Moments later, the three of them were up in Lydia's room and her parents were sitting on the edge of her bed.

Nathan pulled her covers up, "What story do you want to hear Princess?

"You and Mommy, you and Mommy!" the little girl pleaded. It was her favorite story.

"Alright, alright. Well, once upon a time, there was a basketball player who got into trouble, and so he had to come to Tree Hill to make things better. When he got there, that's where he found an incredibly beautiful, caring, smart, funny restaurant owner who made him want to be a better person. So, after begging her to go on a date with him, they fell in love. And the basketball player and the beautiful restaurant owner got married, and then guess what happened?" Nathan told the story.

"They had me!" Lydia cheered.

"That's right, they had a gorgeous princess, and then they had two more sons," Nathan continued, as his left hand reached out to rest on Haley's slightly swollen stomach, "And soon, they'll have another daughter, another little princess."

Nathan and Haley had just found out that their fifth child was going to be another girl. Yes, Haley had let Nathan talk her into five kids. They said they were done after this one, but their friends and family weren't so convinced. Like everyone always said, the Scotts made cute kids, cute, mostly well-behaved kids. And, Haley couldn't argue with the fact that making the kids was pretty fun too.

"Does that mean they'll love the new princess more than the first one?" Lydia asked softly.

"Of course not, sweetie," Haley jumped in, "Just because we're having another baby, doesn't mean that we will love you or any of your brothers any less, I promise."

Lydia looked cautiously between the two of them, "Daddy, will you still come to my tea parties?"

"I always will, Princess," Nathan smiled, placing a kiss to the young girl's forehead as her eyes became droopy, "Just promise not to grow up too quick, okay?"

"Okay Daddy," the young girl mumbled before falling fast asleep.

* * *

"That story just gets better and better every time you tell it," Haley smiled, as the two sat in the backyard, their feet dipped in the pool.

"It's a good story," Nathan replied, "What's your favorite part Mrs. Scott?"

"Hmmm…" Haley thought, "All of it, Mr. Scott."

"Good answer," he smiled, leaning in to kiss her, before pulling back, "Oh, I was thinking about a name for the baby today. What do you think about Jordan?"

"Jordan? As in Michael Jordan?" Haley questioned, "Nathan, we are not naming our daughter after a basketball player."

"Oh come on Hales, it's cute, don't you think?" Nathan whined, mimicking the face that Lydia had made earlier.

"I'll put it on the list, but that doesn't mean yes," Haley argued, before standing up.

"What are you doing babe?" Nathan asked curiously.

"You know what we've never done?" Haley began, untying her robe, letting it fall to the concrete before jumping into the pool, wearing nothing but a smile.

Nathan's eyes widened, "Is my girl frisky?"

"Crazy frisky," Haley smirked, "Now get in."

* * *

Five months later, Jordyn Brooke Scott was born.

And so, the basketball player and the restaurant owner lived happily ever after.

 **The End.**

* * *

 **I hope you all have enjoyed Show Me How To Live! I didn't realize until I'd finished the epilogue that this story ended up having 23 chapters! Total accident, but a completely awesome One Tree Hill reference!**

 **Thank y'all so much for your support and encouragement and reviews! I am currently writing a Naley story called Break Down My Walls, and have ideas/starts for two other Naley stories to come! So, please check those out, and again, THANK YOU SO MUCH!**


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